Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) keeps a confidential list of employees who have faced allegations of wrong-doing.
The existence of the database was first reported Tuesday by WUSA9 in a story about allegations of sexual abuse of students by MCPS employees and contractors.
The report, by Andrea McCarren, said that MCPS “wouldn’t tell WUSA9 who is on it, but we’ve learned the school system keeps a ‘confidential database’ of personnel who demonstrate ‘inappropriate or suspicious behavior’ toward children—a watch list of suspected abusers who are working in area schools.”
The existence of the database was confirmed Wednesday by MCPS spokesman Dana Tofig. He said in a telephone interview that the database serves as a hub for complaints against MCPS employees.
“In some cases those allegations have been resolved,” while in others they’ve been unsubstantiated, Tofig said.
He said the school system uses the database to share information among school administrative staff in case of leadership changes at schools or in the district’s central office. He said the allegations in the complaints could be sexual in nature or involve other personnel issues. He was unable provide the number of employees in the database, saying he did not have that information Wednesday.
“If there’s an allegation of inappropriate conduct of a sexual nature that is verified, in most cases that employee is going to be terminated,” Tofig said.
He said the school system keeps the database confidential because it contains personnel records. “It’s not something we’re going to provide publicly,” Tofig said.
He said MCPS is evaluating its policy regarding allegations against its employees, following recent reports about its alleged mishandling of sexual abuse cases. The school system has convened a work group to address the issue of inappropriate contact with students in public schools and earlier this month received a report with 28 recommendations designed to improve the school system’s policy regarding child sexual abuse and neglect.
Tofig said that earlier this month MCPS held a comprehensive training for its principals with officials from the state’s attorney’s office, Child Protective Services and the Montgomery County Department of Police about how to recognize, evaluate and report allegations of inappropriate conduct. He said additional training will also be provided to other staff members.
“We have a plan of action and we’re implementing it,” Tofig said.
