If lawmakers have their way in New York, teachers’ licenses will be automatically suspended if they are convicted of a sex crime. And to make sure abusive teachers don’t hop from state to state, Maine lawmakers aim to share their names and backgrounds online. Congressman Adam Putnam says a federal bill, the Student Protection Act, would create a national database with that information.  

“It would allow any administrator, in any school in America, to know the full story of a teacher’s past or any other educator’s past who were signing up to come into contact with our children for eight to 10 hours a day.”

A recent AP investigation found more than 2,500 educators whose teaching credentials were revoked, denied, surrendered or sanctioned from 2001 through 2005 following allegations of sexual misconduct. David Kupelian with World Net Daily is glad lawmakers are finally taking note.  

“The things they are doing like automatic suspension of teachers committing sex crimes, illuminating statutes of limitations, increasing penalties are really just common sense.”

Tracey Bailey with the Association of American Educators reminds us not all public school teachers are child predators.

“Teachers are just as shocked and outraged as the general public is about these events, if not more so. They have given their lives to protecting and serving children and can’t understand how these things are allowed to happen.”

Other states considering legislation to crackdown on teacher misconduct: Indiana, Massachusetts, Utah, Kentucky, South Carolina, Missouri, California, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, Virginia, Washington State and West Virginia.