Good morning.
Thursday in Whitewater will be mostly sunny with a high of 97. Sunrise is 6:11 AM and sunset 7:42 PM for 13h 30m 39s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 51.4% of its visible disk illuminated.
On this day in 1991, Ukraine declares itself independent from the Soviet Union.
Anya van Wagtendonk reports School employees who sexually harass students would face felony charge under proposed bill (‘Plan aims to close a loophole in law that allows teachers to say things to students that would be considered sexual misconduct in workplace’):
Behavior that would constitute sexual harassment in the workplace would also be prohibited in school settings under a bipartisan bill moving through the state Legislature.
The legislation would resolve what cosponsor Sen. Jesse James, R-Altoona, called a “gray area in state statute” in which sexual comments or behavior from a school employee to a minor student is technically legal if no physical contact is involved.
“Under our current state law, there are prohibitions against sexual contact with a minor and sexual harassment in the workplace between coworkers. However, what about situations where a teacher is verbally degrading a student with sexual comments?” James said at a public hearing of the Wisconsin state Senate’s judiciary committee. “Common sense would tell us that the teacher should be charged in some way for his or her actions.”
The bill would make it a felony offense for school staff to engage in sexual misconduct “that substantially interfered with a pupil’s academic performance or created an intimidating, hostile, or offensive school environment.”
It would also make this type of behavior an offense requiring mandatory reporting. People convicted of certain crimes against children, including sexual misconduct against students, would permanently lose their licenses to work in schools.
Overdue.
Scientists have discovered why thousands of octopuses huddle in a deep-sea crevice: