WHAT IS FAITH'S LAW?
Faith’s Law is named after prevention advocate and child sexual abuse survivor Faith Colson, who graduated from an Illinois high school in the early 2000s. Faith was sexually abused by a teacher at her high school. Years later, during the course of legal proceedings related to the abuse, Faith learned that several adults within her high school suspected that the teacher’s relationship with her was inappropriate but did not take appropriate action to report their concerns. As a result of her experiences, Faith pushed for change to state laws related to educator sexual misconduct in K-12 schools.
Faith’s Law includes several new requirements for schools and educators intended to prevent sexual abuse and misconduct in schools. Faith’s Law adds a completely new section to the Illinois School Code (105 ILCS 5/22-85.5) pertaining to sexual misconduct in schools. This section requires all school districts, charter schools, and nonpublic schools to develop an employee code of professional conduct policy that must be made available on the school’s website and included in any staff, student, or parent handbook. Please follow the link to District 88’s Board Policy on Employee Code of Professional Conduct
FAITH'S LAW RESOURCE GUIDE
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) has developed and maintains the Faith’s Law Resource Guide that includes guidance for pupils, parents/guardians, and teachers about sexual abuse responses and prevention resources available in their community, including the contact information of entities that provide services for victims of child sexual abuse and their families.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES