School Based Education
Schools are key community partners in preventing child sexual abuse to help young people shape positive and healthy attitudes, beliefs and behaviors that support child sexual abuse prevention. Nurturing these attitudes and behaviors is best achieved by training adults and teaching students skills through a comprehensive sexual abuse prevention education approach.
To support schools in this important role, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) developed guidance materials for child sexual abuse prevention training in collaboration with the Missouri Task Force on the Prevention of Sexual Abuse of Children, led by Missouri KidsFirst.
The guidance materials guide schools through an intentional process of preparing for and providing effective sexual abuse prevention education in compliance with Missouri law.(Section 170.045, RSMo)
Missouri law requires that school districts annually provide trauma-informed, developmentally appropriate sexual abuse training, at minimum for grades 6 through 12.
The training must include:
- Instruction providing students with the knowledge and tools to recognize sexual abuse;
- Instruction providing students with the knowledge and tools to report an incident of sexual abuse;
- Actions that a student who is a victim of sexual abuse could take to obtain assistance and intervention; and
- Available resources for students affected by sexual abuse.