Peoria Standard

When Faith Colson was an Illinois high school student, she felt special under the guidance of one of her teachers. He became a trusted adult until he violated that trust by kissing and sexually abusing her.

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 failed to report their concerns. As a result, Colson advocated for changes to state laws regarding educator sexual misconduct in K-12 schools. The 102nd General Assembly passed Faith’s Law as two separate pieces of legislation; the first took effect in December 2021, and the second part became effective in July 2023.

The original legislation defined sexual misconduct within the School Code and required schools to develop and post employee codes of professional conduct policies. The updated legislation includes employment history reviews as part of hiring processes for schools and contractors, mandates notices to parents/guardians and students when there is an alleged act of sexual misconduct, and modifies procedures for handling such allegations.

However, Faith’s Law did not cover students who were 18 years old or older. In Illinois, students with disabilities can continue their high school education until age 23, yet they are also not protected by this law.

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, aims to protect all students regardless of age from acts of sexual conduct or abuse by educators or school staff members. Despite its necessity, the bill remains stalled in the Senate assignments committee.

Listen to Betraying Faith on the Capitol Crimes Podcast below: