KIRKWOOD, Mo. — Families received a letter from St. John Vianney High School in Kirkwood about a school nurse and athletic department assistant who engaged inappropriately with a student on Tuesday.
The notice also said the staff member also violated the school's social media policy by privately communicating with students there.
5 On Your Side is not naming the woman because she had not been charged with a crime as of Wednesday.
5 On Your Side sent an email to the school and asked about how they were working to prevent incidents like this and received the following response, which reads:
St. John Vianney High School received a report that an employee of the school engaged in inappropriate conduct with a student. Upon receiving the report, the employee was removed from campus and the school immediately contacted the Missouri Department of Social Services and Kirkwood Police Department. The individual is no longer employed by Vianney, and the school is fully cooperating with authorities and their investigation.
As a Catholic, Marianist school our first priority is our students and their wellbeing.
Amy Robins, forensics services director for the Child Advocacy Center of Northeast Missouri, said while it was a bittersweet trend, coming forward has become more common.
"What I feel like used to happen a lot or previously is that you would give that perpetrator the benefit or the doubt or I must have saw that wrong or that couldn't be happening or that text wasn't intentional," Robins said.
The expert also addressed the use of technology in manipulative incidents.
"So, before you had to basically have an opportunity to be able to isolate, manipulate, gather the trust of that child in order to move to those acts, now online, we're seeing that happen within seconds of a friend request," Robins added.
5 On Your Side also received the following response from the Department of Social Services (DSS), which reads:
Under Missouri law, the Department of Social Services must contact appropriate law enforcement agencies when it receives a report that merits investigation. Law enforcement agencies may co-investigate or provide other assistance. Information related to specific child abuse and neglect investigations is closed and confidential under Missouri law, except under very limited circumstances (please see §210.150 RSMo).
For more information about the Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline, click here. You may also find additional information about child abuse, neglect investigations and family assessments, here.
DSS strongly encourages anyone who suspects child abuse or neglect to call our toll-free hotline at 1-800-392-3738. The Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline is answered 24-hours a day, every day, all year round.
Call the 24-hour Child Abuse Hotline at 800-25-ABUSE (800-252-2873) if you suspect that a child has been harmed or is at risk of being harmed by abuse or neglect. If you believe a child is in immediate danger of harm, call 911 first.