The SMMUSD and SMMCTA (teachers' union) policy on student complaints is a license for intimidation and violates state law Michael Chwe, michael@chwe.net Return to smmusdsafety.org On December 22, 2008, Thomas Beltran pleaded guilty to ten felony counts of sexual abuse involving nine students and admitted factual responsibility to molesting two other students over a period of more than ten years (click here for the court transcript).  Mr. Beltran had been a teacher at Lincoln Middle School for 20 years.  The most disturbing aspect of this case is that his abuse was allowed to continue for such a long period of time.  Is there something unusual about the SMMUSD which helped allow Mr. Beltran victimize children for so many years? SMMUSD policy on how a student can enter a complaint about a teacher is contained in the section on "Public Complaints" in the agreement between the SMMUSD and the Santa Monica Malibu Classroom Teachers Association, the labor union representing SMMUSD teachers.  The policy covering the period from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2008, the period when Mr. Beltran was arrested, is on the right.  This policy states that if a student or parent makes a complaint against a teacher, the teacher may request a meeting including the teacher, the complaining party, and an administrator.  But "if the complainant refuses to attend the meeting, the complaint shall neither be placed in the unit member's personnel file nor utilized in any evaluation, assignment, or disciplinary or dismissal action against the unit member." This policy is a license for intimidation.  Very few children, or even adults, would be courageous enough to make a complaint against a teacher knowing that they would have to then meet the teacher face to face.  If the student does not agree to such a meeting, this policy states that no record will be kept of the student's complaint.  This policy is especially hostile to the most serious complaints, about teachers who intimidate, bully, or abuse the trust of students or who discriminate on the basis of race, gender, or sexual orientation. Even now, district students and parents who complain about teachers are told that the student must first confront the teacher, and otherwise there is no recourse.  If a student does not want to meet with the teacher, under district policy the teacher can veto any record of her complaint. A case similar in severity to the Beltran case is the case of Ken DeLuca, a teacher in Sault Ste. Marie, in Ontario, Canada, who pleaded guilty in 1996 to 14 sexual offenses involving students over 21 years.  In his report, the Honorable Sydney L. Robins, former Supreme Court Justice of Ontario, states: "Often students who complained were called into the principal's office and made to confront DeLuca with their allegations.  This served to intimidate the students and encourage recantation." On June 5, 2008, I presented a letter to the SMMUSD board and wrote a letter to the Santa Monica Mirror arguing that this policy should be changed.  On January 29, 2010, in their tentative agreement, the SMMCTA and the SMMUSD revised this policy.  The new policy is to the right.  The only change is a paragraph which states that the policy does not apply to allegations of child abuse or sexual harassment. The policy of requiring students to meet with teachers before any complaint is recorded is unusual.  For example, the Burbank USD, the El Segundo USD, the Long Beach USD, the Manhattan Beach USD, the Plumas USD, the Redondo Beach USD, the San Diego USD, the Santa Barbara USD and the Upland USD do not have policies nearly as draconian.  For example, these other districts at least allow students to make written complaints.  Under the SMMUSD policy, a student complaining about a teacher can submit a written complaint only after attending a meeting requested by the teacher.  Even revised, the SMMUSD policy is almost uniquely hostile to student complaints.  The revision in the policy is also an admission that the original policy may have played a role in deterring student complaints of child abuse in the case of Mr. Beltran.  The revised SMMUSD policy remains inadequate because whether a complaint involves child abuse cannot always be determined in advance; children and even adults cannot necessarily distinguish what is child abuse and what is not.  For example, in March 2006, a Lincoln student complained about Mr. Beltran; in a letter written by Kathy Scott, then Lincoln Principal, the student "felt uncomfortable being in Mr. Tom Beltran's class because of the way he touched her."  This complaint was investigated by the SMPD, which decided there was insufficient evidence to proceed with criminal charges.  This student was later included as a victim in the criminal case against Mr. Beltran.  In other words, when the student complained, Ms. Scott understood it to be a matter of inappropriate touching but it was in fact a matter of felony sexual abuse. Even for matters less important than child abuse, it is essential that students feel that they can complain about their teachers without reprisals or intimidation.  If a student thinks that complaints about lesser matters such as mistreatment, insults, or inappropriate language are not taken seriously, then why should she think that a complaint about more serious matters such as child abuse will be taken seriously? Also, even if an investigation is inconclusive, as in the case of the student's complaint in March 2006, a record should be kept because a series of inconclusive investigations can comprise a pattern which deserves further scrutiny (for example, the UCLA policy on sexual harassment requires that all complaints and investigations about a professor be recorded for five years, regardless of whether a complaint is found valid).  Since no records were kept, we have no idea whether Mr. Beltran should have been investigated earlier. The current policy also goes against the California Code of Regulations, which in Title 5, Section 4621, states that "local policies shall ensure that complainants are protected from retaliation and that the identity of a complainant alleging discrimination remain confidential as appropriate.'' It is of course essential to protect the rights of teachers against unfair accusations, but it is also clear that the current policy has failed, with utterly disastrous results.  Children and parents must be able to make confidential complaints.  If any of the eleven students who were victimized by Mr. Beltran had felt comfortable enough to complain, and had any of their complaints been taken seriously, immense tragedy could have been avoided.

Section on Public Complaints, Agreement between SMMCTA and SMMUSD, October 2006. Section on Public Complaints, Agreement between SMMCTA and SMMUSD, January 2010.