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6.17 Child Maltreatment Reporting

Chapter Six: Statutory Compliance

Procedure Title: Child Maltreatment ReportingBased On: Board Policy 2
Procedure Number:6.17Date Adopted/Revised: August 5, 2013

1. Purpose

South Arkansas Community College strives to maintain a safe environment for children on all college owned or occupied property.

2. Definitions.

A. South Arkansas Community College – South Arkansas Community College (SouthArk) means all the campuses and site locations (including the Arboretum) within South Arkansas Community College now and in the future.

B. Child Maltreatment – Child maltreatment means abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, sexual exploitation, or abandonment as defined in the Arkansas Child Maltreatment Act.

C. School – For purposes of the System Child Maltreatment Reporting Policy, School means a technical institute or post-secondary vocational-technical school and a two-year or four-year college or university.

D. School Official. – School Official means any person authorized by a school to exercise administrative or supervisory authority over employees, students, or agents of the school. A volunteer exercising administrative or supervisory authority in a program conducted by a school is also considered a School Official.

E. Mandated Reporter – A School Official is a Mandated Reporter who must immediately notify the Child Abuse Hotline or law enforcement if he or she has reasonable cause to suspect that a child has been subjected to or died from child maltreatment, or who observes the child being subjected to conditions or circumstances which would reasonably result in child maltreatment. Other Mandated Reporters are listed in the Arkansas Child Maltreatment Act.

3. South Arkansas Community College (SouthArk) Child Maltreatment Reporting Policy

All employees, and all volunteers participating in SouthArk conducted programs on SouthArk owned or occupied property, will immediately report known or suspected child maltreatment to the State of Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline and the police department having jurisdiction over that campus.

4. Process

A. Report of Child Maltreatment – Any employee, or any volunteer participating in a program on SouthArk owned or operated property or on behalf of SouthArk, must immediately report known or suspected child maltreatment by contacting both the Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-482-5964 and the Campus Public Safety Department at 870-864-7125 or 870-665-1263. SouthArk will post the telephone numbers on their home web page under the heading Child Maltreatment Reporting.

B. Liability A School Official is subject to criminal and civil penalties for failure to report child maltreatment.

C. Immunity A School Official who in good faith makes a report of child maltreatment is immune from suit and civil or criminal liability.

5. Training Available

The website below provides a link for Arkansas Mandated Reporter training and to obtain a certificate for such training.

www.ar.mandatedreporter.org

College Supervisors shall be responsible for ensuring employees under their supervision receives the training and filing the completion certificate with the Human Resource Department.

The certificates of completion shall be maintained in the Human Resource Department.