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BPS Response to Child-Child Incidents of Sexual Behavior: Guidance for Informing Caregivers
When Incidents Involve Children Ages 11 and Under (criminal charges not allowed for children under age 12 per MA law)
Goal is to help caregivers to:
Inform caregiver of school reporting requirements (School Police, Confidential Log, DCF), including:
Further explain referral to the Children’s Advocacy Center of Suffolk County (CAC)
With a referral to the Children’s Advocacy Center, the focus is on providing support and services for all the children and families affected.
A CAC Family Advocate (FA), with specialized training in children’s problematic sexual behavior, will follow up with the school and caregivers of all children involved. CAC FAs will try to learn more about what happened, how children and families are coping, and assess whether the sexual behavior is reason for concern. The CAC FA can assist with any services needed.
When indicated, the CAC FA will also explain the CAC’s free specialized services available for children ages 7-12 with problematic sexual behavior (Problematic Sexual Behavior-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / PSB-CBT).
Provide caregiver with the essential factual information about the incident.
Caregivers typically expect the school to share details about what happened whether their child is the victim/target of sexual misconduct or the alleged initiator. Caregivers are likely to be more receptive to and collaborative with the school’s response, when they are adequately informed.
Updated September 2021
Supplemental Guidance to Support EQT-3 Superintendent’s Circular
General Guidelines:
Examples:
- “A child in your child’s class reported to the classroom teacher that your child rubbed this child on their private parts on top of their clothes.”
- “Several children told the teacher that while on the playground, your child chased them and grabbed them on their butts with both hands. When one of the children told her to stop, thechild said your child said, “I can do whatever I want.”
- “Your child told his/her teacher that while in the bathroom today, another child who is the same age told your child to pull down his/her pants and when your child said “no”, the other child pulled down your child’s pants and poked him/her in the private area”.
Assure caregiver that the school’s first concern is the safety of all children involved.
Inform caregiver of school practice to speak with the caregivers of all children involved.
Provide general guidance for caregiver on how to follow up with their child about what happened:
Overview of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Suffolk County
The CAC is a non-profit agency that works in collaboration with many different agencies (DCF, police, prosecutors, schools, hospitals and other community providers) within Boston and throughout Suffolk County when child abuse is reported: www.suffolkcac.org
Model Contact Information:
Main CAC number: xxx.xxx.xxxx
Information about referral/services and to request consultation: Director of Mental Health at the CAC: xxxxxxx@cac.org
(Reprinted with Permission)
Presenters: Joan Tabachnick, Emma Halper, and Rachel King, PhD For decades, sexual violence…
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