WELLINGTON, Fla. — WPTV has obtained new information about what is in the training that Palm Beach County school employees are required to take for identifying and reporting cases of suspected child abuse and neglect.
This comes about a month after five Palm Beach Central High School employees, including the principal, were arrested for failing to report the suspected sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: Education
Through a public records request, WPTV asked the School District of Palm Beach County for the training employees go through as mandatory reporters of child abuse and neglect.
WPTV education reporter Stephanie Susskind received a link to the training from the Florida Department of Children and Families.
After creating an account, Susskind went through the same hour-long course that educators go through. The training is a series of slides that include text and pictures. You can also choose to listen along to what's on the screen.
The online course is divided into two sections: "Identifying Child Abuse and Neglect" and "Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect."
It explains that a report to the Florida Abuse Hotline is required when someone knows or has reasonable cause to suspect a child is abused, abandoned, or neglected. It goes on to define abused as being a victim of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse.
The course is focused on how to handle suspected abuse or neglect at the hands of an adult. It does not, however, go into detail when allegations involve two minors, which the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said was the case at Palm Beach Central High School.
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The training does stress the importance of reporting to the Florida Abuse Hotline — which is 1-800-962-2873 — even if you are not sure you have enough information to warrant the report.
"Your obligation is to make a report if you have a reasonable cause to suspect that abuse or neglect has occurred," the training course instructs. "It is not your responsibility to investigate or prove the case."
According to a sheriff's office incident report in the Palm Beach Central case, Principal Darren Edgecomb is alleged to have said he did not report the allegations to DCF because he "felt a sexual assault did not occur, based on his own investigation."
The case goes back to 2021, when the sheriff's office said a student wrote a letter to Palm Beach Central teacher Scott Houchins, explaining that her 15-year-old friend was sexually assaulted by another student off-campus.
The investigative report details how that information made its way, in different forms and conversations, to five school employees, including Edgecomb, two assistant principals, Houchins, and a school counselor.
But none of them reported the allegations to the hotline. Now they are all facing felony charges.
All five of the suspects have a court hearing Thursday. Assistant principal Daniel Snider has filed a motion to dismiss the criminal charge against him. For now, they all have moved to other positions in the school district away from students.
The School District of Palm Beach County released the following statement to WPTV on Tuesday about its mandatory training for reporting suspected cases of child abuse and neglect:
"The School District requires that all employees complete the course for professionally mandated reporters, which is offered online by the Department of Children and Families. The mandatory reporting law does not include a requirement for repeated or ongoing training on this subject. However, in 2020 the District required all School Based employees to re-submit a certificate of completion of the DCF Professionally Mandated Reporter Course. This same requirement was extended to all District based employees in 2021. All newly hired employees are required to submit a certificate of completion upon being hired, and current employees will be required to take a mandatory refresher course every two years."