Lake County Gazette

When Faith Colson was an Illinois high school student, she felt special due to the attention from one of her teachers. He became a trusted adult until he kissed her and sexually abused her, betraying her trust.

During legal proceedings related to the abuse, Colson discovered that several adults at her high school suspected the teacher's relationship with her was inappropriate but did not report their concerns. This experience led Colson to advocate for changes in state laws regarding educator sexual misconduct in K-12 schools. As a result, Faith’s Law was passed by the 102nd General Assembly as two separate pieces of legislation: the first went into effect in December 2021, and the second part became effective in July 2023.

The initial legislation defined sexual misconduct within the School Code and required schools to develop and post employee codes of professional conduct policies. The updated legislation added employment history reviews as part of hiring and vetting processes for schools and contractors, mandated notices to parents/guardians and students when there is an alleged act of sexual misconduct, and introduced other procedural changes for handling such allegations.

Faith’s Law aimed to protect all students but did not cover those aged 18 or older. In Illinois, students with disabilities can continue their high school education until age 23, leaving them unprotected by the law as well.

Illinois State Representative Amy Elik identified this loophole when a close relative was abused by a teacher. Elik's legislation, which has bipartisan co-sponsors including Rep. Tom Weber, seeks to close this loophole and ensure protection for all students regardless of age from acts of sexual conduct or abuse by educators or school staff members. Despite its necessity, the legislation remains stalled in the Senate assignments committee.