The Los Angeles School District’s chief financial officer said during a Tuesday school board meeting that he was “surprised” by the sums spent on settling sexual harassment against teachers.
The district agreed to pay $6.5 million to a victim of sexual abuse in April after administrators allegedly failed to report abuse perpetrated by a teacher in the district. Another victim who claims she was sexually abused by a teacher was paid a $7.9 million settlement in September. Grover Cleveland Charter High School has reportedly paid out $15.1 million so far this year to former students claiming they were victimized by teachers in the district. (RELATED: ‘What The Hell Is Going On?’: California Parents, School Board Members Slam Dems’ Targeting Of Parental Rights)
“Last year … we had a circumstance where we were setting aside additional dollars in the context to address certain liabilities, comments that had been made here previously with regards to heinous activities of adults with children, is the simplest way to put that. We were surprised by the amounts that we were compelled to set aside a year ago.”
Requirements that parents be notified of sexual matters regarding their children have become a hot-button issue in the state of California of late. An Orange County policy would require schools to notify a parent if their child identifies as transgender. The district is the fifth to adopt or consider such a policy in the state of California, after Murrieta Valley Unified, Chino Valley Unified, Temecula Valley Unified and Rocklin Unified. Rocklin school board passed their parental notification policy after hours of debate and protest in a school board meeting Thursday.
Oh man, LAUSD’s CFO admits that he is surprised by the large amount that they have to set aside for a legal defense fund to settle cases with “adult heinous acts with children”. They set aside 100s of millions of dollars??
But sure, let’s keep sexual secrets from parents: pic.twitter.com/5KHLPKV3wB
— bluejayav (@bluejayav) September 27, 2023
Democratic California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued to block such a policy in Chino Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) in August. A judge blocked the policy in September. Proponents of such policies say they are standing up for parental rights and the dignity of children.
“Rocklin Unified stood up for students, parents, and families in passing a parental notification policy that is not only well supported in the Rocklin community but across California,” Jonathan Zachreson, a parental rights activist told the Daily Caller News Foundation in September.
Opponents of such laws say they would only victimize transgender identified students and expose them to potential harm from “non-affirming” parents.
“Attorney General Bonta urges school districts in California to take note and prioritize the well-being of transgender and gender-nonconforming students that they are charged to protect as he continues monitoring school districts considering similar policies statewide,” a spokesperson for Bonta told the DCNF.