Private School Abuse

Private School Abuse presents a series of criminal and lurid actions frequently committed against students by school faculty members, administrators or staff regarding sexual assault of varying degrees. The attack may be a one-time, non-consensual attack or it can involve numerous assaults during an ongoing interaction. For example, an continuing intimate encounter with a student, created by the predatory actions of a faculty member, school administrator or employee and whether leading to physical consensual sex acts or not, is a form of abuse.

Student on student sexual assault is an additional type of abuse, which might be made worse by the school’s negligence to provide a safe environment that allowed the assault to happen. Within the school community are students of different ages, maturity and experiences. Younger students may be exposed to the predatory actions of older, more mature students. Their actions, coupled with peer-pressure exerted to both the attacker and the targeted victim, could lead to varying forms of abuse that includes sexual assault of varying degrees.

In all reported Boarding School Assault matters, a school administration’s megligence to fully, adequately report the assault to police and other authorities, or its additional negligence to research, address and deal fully with the situation amplifies the effects on the abuse survivor, the school population and possibly others. Recent Boarding School Abuse issues reported in the press highlight these failures, including situations where the perpetrator quietly departs the school only to assume employment somewhere else in a school environment.

Predatory Behavior
Most private schools pride themselves on their tiny, personal communities inside a well-defined and safe campus. In this environment, faculty, administrators and staff are frequently much closer and familiar with students than would be expected in a non-boarding school setting. This may provide both opportunity and cover for the possible abuser and for the predatory behavior.

In some matters, the abuser may be a likeable and popular individual, generally thought to be a positive addition to the school community. A targeted student may feel flattered that a well-liked superior in the school community has expressed special attention in him or her. Because of this popularity and involvement into the school community, attack accusations against these attackers are often met with doubt, disbelief, and resistance by the community. Frequesntly, abusers have distance and judgment problems which manifest themselves in oddly friendly relationships with students that are past what are commonly expected. This creates a predatory path and opportunity for the abuse.

All abusers, to differing degrees, use predatory actions that are generally referred to as “grooming,” or targeting a potential abuse victim. Following is a compilation of grooming methods used by predators who are in a position of authority in relation to the subordinate student.

Grooming
Grooming is a main part of a predator’s method. In a boarding school setting, a predator usually works closely with small amounts of students, knowing each student’s needs and vulnerabilities. Once a victim is identified and chosen, these vulnerabilities – such as loneliness, low self-esteem, emotional neediness, or attention seeking behavior, might be systematically exploited in the following manners:

Trust

A predator will initially work to gain the student’s trust. This step is the most difficult to realize as boarding school communities are often tight-knit and personal interaction is commonplace. Here, the attacker is likely part of a group of staff who are genuinely interested in the student’s wellness and achievement at the school.
Reliance
As a predator creates a trusting relationship with the potential student-victim, the student may start to count on more and more on the predator for any need it is that the predator is exploiting and fulfilling. The victim might spend more time with the predator, feeling increasingly comfortable with the relationship. Additionally to attention and kindness, the potential victim may receive gifts from the predator, including valuable, presents like the guarantee of high grades, or a university recommendation letter. The reliance stage is mainly when the predatory behavior is noticeable from well-meaning collegial behavior.

Isolation

As the grooming continues, the predator might work to isolate the potential victim. At school, this might mean late meetings, tutoring sessions, encounters in the dormitory , one-on-one athletic training sessions, or other such circumstances.
Sexualization
The predator will begin to de-sensitize the possible victim from reacting negatively to touching, caressing and other actions that lead to sexual interaction. This might begin with breaching the physical-touch barrier, or communicating, with suggestive messages to gauge the victim’s reaction to the advancement. This might escalate until the relationship advances to one of a physical, sexual nature.
Maintenance
As the sexual relationship is created, the predator may try to maintain control over the student and the continuing abuse. The predator will probably try to manipulate the victim by inducing emotions of shame, or even threats, or use the opposite tactic of continuing to make the victim feel special and desired. In any event, the predator will continue to exploit the victim with means available to keep the inappropriate physical relationship.

Impacts on Abuse Victims

While the grooming escalates as intended by the predator, the victim, being made to feel special, will probably respond affirmatively to the behaviors. The predator, from these well planned and performed grooming behaviors and activities, seeks to re-calibrate and reduce the moral confines of the targeted student. Since the abuse survivor participated in the re-calibration, he often has deep feelings of shame, initially blaming herself for the incident and likely not to report it.

Additionally, beyond the abuse has been revealed, victims of private school abuse are frequently exposed to discreet social pressure and intimidation, such as being bullied, isolation from their peers, or revenge from teachers. Particularly at boarding schools, where academics are stringent, competition can be fierce and social circles small, survivors of abuse can be rapidly isolated and socially persecuted. Exposed to such reactions, many boarding school abuse victims that have reported the abuse leave school. Others, fighting with the prospect of such isolation and social abuse, report the abuse years later. In either case, the impact can be significant and life-altering.

Some abuse victims deal with from long-term effects of the abuse that include depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, low self-esteem, suicidal feelings, substance abuse, disturbed sleeping and eating patterns, and difficulty establishing and keeping healthy relationships. Individualized therapy and support groups might help survivors overcome those effects.

Legally, a victim of boarding school abuse may recover financial compensation from the abuser and more commonly, from the school for its failure to protect the student from the predator, as well as failures or negligence in its process of reviewing and responding to the victim’s report of the abuse. If you are a survivor of boarding school abuse and would like to confidentially review your situation and learn of your legal options at no cost or obligation, we are ready to talk with you. It is important for a victim to realize that experiencing assault is not your fault. The lawyers at Meneo Law Group are committed to bringing those who committed the the abuse to justice.