JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The teacher misconduct scandals that erupted at Douglas Anderson School for the Arts in 2023 are now spurring a push for change at the state level.
It all started with the arrest of former Douglas Anderson teacher Jeffrey Clayton in March of 2023, which led to calls for more transparency from Duval County Public Schools.
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Five additional teachers were removed from DA classrooms over a two-year span.
Former DA student Shyla Jenkins told Action News Jax parents were mostly left in the dark, and the district was slow to move accused staff away from children.
“We always said at DA, we aren’t the only school experiencing this, we just happen to be the most public school experiencing this,” said Jenkins.
Now, there’s a push at the state level to tighten up reporting requirements.
“We owe that to the parents. We owe that to the students. We don’t want any more of these issues to happen,” said State Senator Clay Yarborough (R-Jacksonville).
Yarborough has filed a bill that would require school staff to self-report to their district within 48 hours if they’ve been arrested and charged with certain crimes.
It also broadens what kind of charges trigger removal from the classroom to include a long list of additional crimes laid out in state law, including misdemeanors.
After being informed of their arrest, school boards would have 24 hours to remove staff from the classroom and notify parents of any students that had contact with them.
“And that’s really at the root of it because we know that with the Douglas Anderson situation, there were teachers that were allowed to remain in student contact even after they had been arrested for an alleged offense against a minor,” said Yarborough.
Jenkins said she’s hopeful the bill could steer schools in the right direction, but added there could be opportunities to improve it.
She’d like to see a requirement for parents to receive notification and explanation when teachers previously removed from the classroom are allowed to return.
“You want justice, to know what happened and why,” said Jenkins.
A House companion bill was just filled Thursday.
The legislative session officially kicks off next Tuesday, March 4th.
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