Yes. It is required by law in the state of Illinois to contact the authorities for a case of suspected abuse.

I had a young lady come to me and tell me that she was being abused at home. Without missing a beat, I walked her down to her counselor who then wrote down her statement with me as a witness and then contacted the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). She was removed from the home temporarily until the mother’s boyfriend moved out and the mother agreed to counseling.

One student was removed from her home because she’d been impregnated by her brother. None of her teachers were even aware of her pregnancy until her mother called her in as absent and gave the explanation that she had just given birth. It was only after she returned to school that she told one of her teachers that her brother was the father. Her mother’s response was “boys will be boys” and didn’t fight the process since “I don’t need another child under this roof.”

Once upon a time, teachers were actually encouraged to touch students: a hand on the shoulder, a pat on the back, a high five, and so on. One of my male students flinched when I lightly touched his shoulder. I kept an eye on him for a couple of days— he usually was fine with someone touching him— and slowly began to put together a story about what was happening in his life. His older brother had returned from service overseas and was beating him for any little annoyance. The student had not been dressing for gym class for the better part of the week and one of his friends confided in me that he was badly bruised. A student who was normally involved and spirited had gone pretty quiet. He worshiped his brother and probably wouldn’t have said anything until teachers became involved.