By Brendan Dzwierzynski
KU Statehouse Wire Service
TOPEKA — The House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice heard testimonies Thursday for “Erin’s Law,” a requirement for school districts to implement a plan for handling sexual abuse of students.
The committee heard from proponents, opponents and neutral conferees for the law, which is carried by HB2048. Five proponents of the bill argued for safer environments for children who need to report sexual abuse.
“Sexual abuse is so pervasive, and statistics show that only four in 10 kids who are victims of abuse will ever report that abuse,” said Jayme Morris-Hardeman, the director of finance and advocacy for the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Kansas. “Just getting the information out there to teachers and children is going to increase the amount of reporting that occurs.”
Diana Schunn, representing the Child Advocacy Center of Sedgwick County, emphasized the importance of a teacher’s ability to handle a sexual abuse situation.
“Students oftentimes do disclose to their teachers, so being able to provide education not only to the students, but also to the teachers,” Schunn said. “To be able to prepare them in those situations is absolutely fundamental to the disclosure process.”
Christie Appelhanz, executive director of the Children’s Alliance of Kansas, gave the lone opposing testimony. She said that a lack of funding could lead to poor training for both students and teachers and could do more harm than good for victims.
“An issue as complicated as sexual abuse can’t be addressed without new resources, and I’m really worried about the unintended consequences,” Appelhanz said. “School districts need resources in order to effectively play a role in the prevention of child abuse. Something is not always better than nothing.”
“Erin’s Law” is named for Erin Merryn, a survivor of sexual abuse by both a family friend and a relative. The Erin’s Law group is a 501 (c)(4) non-profit social welfare organization, according to its website, which pushes for the implementation of the law nationwide.
Vicki Hubin, representing the Western Kansas Child Advocacy Center, spoke about presentations by Merryn and the impact they had on students in her testimony.
“It was amazing to hear her story,” Hubin said. “As soon as she got done telling her story to the junior high and high school, we had five youths disclose. Their story was her story.”
A written testimony from Merryn was presented to the committee.
A previous effort to pass “Erin’s Law” in Kansas failed in committee in June 2016. According to Merryn’s testimony, 28 states currently have “Erin’s Law.”
Brendan Dzwierzynski is a University of Kansas senior journalism major from LaGrange Park, Illinois.