For information on mandated reporting and the process to report, please visit The Child Abuse Prevention Center: http://www.thecapcenter.org/help/prevent-or-report-abuse/how-to-make-a-report.
Members of a new task force appointed by the San Diego Unified School District Board of Education met for the first time on October 16, 2019 to discuss how law enforcement and other agencies can better collaborate to protect children from sexual harassment and abuse.
Task force members ultimately decided to hold a summit to further discuss best practices and planned action for improved collaboration regarding the reporting, response, and prevention of sexual harassment and abuse of students.
"I am inspired by the collective compassion and dedication the task force members have shown for the children and youth of San Diego," said San Diego Unified trustee Richard Barrera, who was instrumental in establishing the task force. "Our schools and our community will be better for this collaboration."
During the first task force meeting, representatives from the District Attorney's Office, the City Attorney, the San Diego Police Department, and San Diego Unified School Police shared their agency's role in the protection of students to improve interagency collaboration.
The task force will be meeting again on Monday, December 2nd.
"This is an extremely important conversation to take on," said Superintendent Cindy Marten. "I am incredibly proud to see this level of collaboration among agencies and individuals that share a common mission."
Established in September, the new task force is charged with identifying potential areas for improvement regarding collaboration between the various agencies working to protect children from sexual harassment and abuse. Superintendent Marten and the task force will present its preliminary finding and recommendations to the board by the end of January 2020.
The task force includes:
- Dr. Abby Brewer-Johnson, Chair, San Diego Psychological Association Child, Family and Youth Committee
- Office of the City Attorney Mara Elliott
- Captain Rich Freedman, San Diego Police Department
- Rickeena Boyd-Kamei, San Diego Education Association member
- Loxie Gant, parent
- Kimberly Giardina, Director, San Diego County Child Welfare Services
- Dr. Rebecca Mendiola, San Diego County Office of Education Assistant Superintendent of Student Services
- Bryce Benavente Pablo-Cook, Student, School of Creative and Performing Arts
- Derby Pattengill, parent
- Dr. Jolie Pickett, Administrators Association San Diego President
- Tracy Prior, Deputy District Attorney, Office of the County District Attorney
- Jay Sieber, Student, San Diego High School
- Dr. Suzanne Starling, Medical Director, Chadwick Center for Children and Families, Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego and Clinical Professor, Department of Pediatrics, UCSD School of Medicine
- Mahogany Taylor, parent
- Charles Wilson, Senior Director, Chadwick Center for Children and Families, Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego