Students are walking onto school campuses thinking that they are safe. As a student starts to grow into experience puberty, a select number of adults on campus find them attractive, leading to inappropriate sexual advances towards minors.

Teachers who abuse their job and have sexual relationships with male or female students should never be allowed to step foot onto campus again. Staff who act like this endanger students, creating concerns for the minor’s family and give the school a bad reputation.

Students should never enter campus and face an abuser. Teachers do not deserve to fulfill their career if they are sexually assaulting teenagers.

According to Lake County News, Terrace Middle School teacher, Ricardo Ruiz, was arrested for attempting to meet a 14-year-old girl at Target in a shopping center in Brea, Calif.

Lake Country News states, “He was arrested on felony charges of contacting a minor to commit a felony, arranging to meet with a minor for a lewd purpose and meeting with a minor for a lewd purpose,” said Lt. Tony Barbosa of Brea Police Department.

Teachers, like Ruiz, are a good example of an adult abusing their power as an educator. Carelessly risking their career to meet a minor, expecting something good to be the outcome.

Students who experience abuse become distracted from their studies, their mental mindsets change impacting them negatively – they no longer feel comfortable or safe stepping foot onto campus.

Young students are still mentally developing and if they experience sexual abuse from their teachers, they will feel afraid and insecure in their relationships with future partners and in school.

A pubic California court case, Jane Doe, a Minor v. Lawndale Elementary School District, states that a 13-year girl was sexually assaulted by 26-year old, Jason Farr who was an employee of the school district.

The case states Doe suing the school district for negligence even though the district didn’t have the duty to protect her unless they knew about the sexual abuse between Farr and Doe.

Because of this case, the California negligence law gave school administrators the responsibility to protect students from sexual abuse by the school employees even without the acknowledgment of sexual assault.

In order to prevent sexual assault between minors and staff, students and parents should educate themselves on what could happen on school campuses.

School campuses should host mandatory lectures for all their teachers and inform staff of the consequences of taking advantage of any adolescent. Schools should set aside time to inform students of assaults as well.

Every school district should take precautions with adults by checking on each teacher as well as helping students feel comfortable showing them that staff members care. So that students can ask for help and report anything suspicious.

Sexual assault between staff and minors is getting out of hand and needs to be prevented. If schools, parents and administrators do not take this seriously, students will feel unsafe causing them to purposely miss school.

If any student is experiencing sexual assault from their professor or teacher please contact your school immediately, so these individuals are being punished and taken away from minors.

If you or someone you know is experiencing sexual assault, contact National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673.