Private School Abuse
Boarding School Abuse illustrates a range of illegal and lurid activities frequently committed on students by school faculty members, administrators or employees regarding sexual assault of varying degrees. The assault can be a one-time, non-consensual abuse or it may include many assaults during an continuing interaction. For example, an ongoing intimate encounter with a student, formed by the predatory behavior of a faculty member, school administrator or staff and whether heading to physical agreed sex acts or not, is a form of abuse.
Student-on-student sexual assault is an additional type of abuse, that may be made worse by the school’s failure to provide a safe environment that allowed the assault to happen. Inside the school population are students of different ages, maturity and experiences. Immature students might be subjected to the predatory actions of older, more experienced students. This behavior, coupled with peer-pressure exerted on both the predator and the targeted victim, may lead to varying forms of abuse including sexual assault of varying degrees.
In all reported Boarding School Abuse situations, a school administration’s failure to fully, adequately report the assault to police and other authorities, or its further failure to investigate, address and deal completely with the matter increases the effects on the abuse survivor, the school community and possibly others. Recent Boarding School Abuse cases reported in the media highlight these failures, including matters where the perpetrator quietly departs the campus only to assume working elsewhere in a school environment.
Predatory Behavior
Many boarding schools pride themselves on their small, personal communities inside a well-defined and secure campus. In this environment, faculty, administrators and staff are often much closer and familiar with students than might be expected in a non-boarding school situation. This can create both opportunity and cover for the possible abuser and for the predatory behavior.
In some matters, the abuser may be a personable and popular person, generally thought to be a enhancement 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 in the school community, abuse allegations against these criminals are frequently met with distrust, non-belief, and resistance from the community. Frequesntly, abusers have distance and judgment issues which manifest themselves in oddly friendly relationships with students that are beyond what are normally anticipated. This creates a predatory path and opportunity for the abuse.
All abusers, to varying degrees, employ predatory methods that are generally known as “grooming,” or targeting a possible 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 often works closely with small amounts of students, understanding each student’s needs and vulnerabilities. Once a victim is identified and selected, these vulnerabilities – such as loneliness, low self-esteem, emotional neediness, or attention seeking behavior, can be systematically exploited in the following ways:
Trust
A predator may initially work to get the student’s trust. This step is most difficult to realize as private school communities are often tight-knit and personal engagement is commonplace. Here, abuse in boarding schools is usually part of a group of staff who are genuinely interested in the student’s wellbeing and success at the school.
Reliance
As a predator establishes a trusting engagement with the potential student-victim, the student will start to rely more and more on the predator for whatever need it is that the predator is leveraging and fulfilling. The student might spend more time with the predator, feeling more and more comfortable with the relationship. In addition to attention and kindness, the potential victim may receive gifts from the predator, including valuable, gifts such as the guarantee of high marks, or a college recommendation letter. The reliance step is mainly when the predatory behavior is distinguishable from well-meaning collegial behavior.
Isolation
As the grooming progresses, the predator might try to isolate the student. At school, this might mean late get togethers, tutoring sessions, meetings in the dormitory , one-on-one athletic training sessions, or other such circumstances.
Sexualization
The predator will start to de-sensitize the possible victim from reacting negatively to contact, caressing and other actions which lead to sexual interaction. This might begin with breaking the physical-touch barrier, or verbally, with suggestive language to gauge the victim’s reaction to the progression. This will escalate until the relationship transforms to one of a physical, sexual nature.
Maintenance
Once the sexual relationship is established, the predator will work to keep control of the student and the continuing abuse. The predator will probably try to manipulate the victim by introducing feelings of shame, or possibly threats, or employ the opposite strategy 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 Survivors
While the grooming increases as planned by the predator, the targeted student, being made to feel special, will probably respond positively to the actions. The predator, through these well-thought-out and performed grooming behaviors and activities, tries to re-calibrate and reduce the moral confines of the targeted student. Since the abuse survivor participated in this re-calibration, she often has deep feelings of guilt, initially blaming herself for the incident and hesitant to report it.
Furthermore, after the abuse has been revealed, victims of private school abuse are frequently subjected to discreet social pressure and intimidation, such as bullying, alienation from their peers, or retaliation from staff. Especially at boarding schools, where education is rigorous, competition can be intense and social circles small, victims of abuse might be readily isolated and socially abused. Subjected to those reactions, many boarding school abuse victims that have reported the abuse leave school. Others, faced with the prospect of such isolation and social persecution, report the abuse decades later. In either case, the impact can be significant and lasting.
Some abuse survivors suffer from long-term effects of the abuse that include depression, anxiety, ptsd, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse, disturbed sleeping and eating patterns, and difficulty creating and keeping healthy relationships. Individual therapy and support groups might assist survivors get past those effects.
Legally, a survivor of boarding school abuse could recover financial compensation from the abuser and more frequently, from the school for its failure to protect the student from the predator, as well as failures or deficiencies in its method of reviewing and replying to the victim’s report of the abuse. If you are a survivor of boarding school abuse and would like to confidentially share your situation and learn of your legal options at no cost or obligation, we are ready to speak with you. It is important for a survivor 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.
Student-on-student sexual assault is an additional type of abuse, that may be made worse by the school’s failure to provide a safe environment that allowed the assault to happen. Inside the school population are students of different ages, maturity and experiences. Immature students might be subjected to the predatory actions of older, more experienced students. This behavior, coupled with peer-pressure exerted on both the predator and the targeted victim, may lead to varying forms of abuse including sexual assault of varying degrees.
In all reported Boarding School Abuse situations, a school administration’s failure to fully, adequately report the assault to police and other authorities, or its further failure to investigate, address and deal completely with the matter increases the effects on the abuse survivor, the school community and possibly others. Recent Boarding School Abuse cases reported in the media highlight these failures, including matters where the perpetrator quietly departs the campus only to assume working elsewhere in a school environment.
Predatory Behavior
Many boarding schools pride themselves on their small, personal communities inside a well-defined and secure campus. In this environment, faculty, administrators and staff are often much closer and familiar with students than might be expected in a non-boarding school situation. This can create both opportunity and cover for the possible abuser and for the predatory behavior.
In some matters, the abuser may be a personable and popular person, generally thought to be a enhancement 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 in the school community, abuse allegations against these criminals are frequently met with distrust, non-belief, and resistance from the community. Frequesntly, abusers have distance and judgment issues which manifest themselves in oddly friendly relationships with students that are beyond what are normally anticipated. This creates a predatory path and opportunity for the abuse.
All abusers, to varying degrees, employ predatory methods that are generally known as “grooming,” or targeting a possible 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 often works closely with small amounts of students, understanding each student’s needs and vulnerabilities. Once a victim is identified and selected, these vulnerabilities – such as loneliness, low self-esteem, emotional neediness, or attention seeking behavior, can be systematically exploited in the following ways:
Trust
A predator may initially work to get the student’s trust. This step is most difficult to realize as private school communities are often tight-knit and personal engagement is commonplace. Here, abuse in boarding schools is usually part of a group of staff who are genuinely interested in the student’s wellbeing and success at the school.
Reliance
As a predator establishes a trusting engagement with the potential student-victim, the student will start to rely more and more on the predator for whatever need it is that the predator is leveraging and fulfilling. The student might spend more time with the predator, feeling more and more comfortable with the relationship. In addition to attention and kindness, the potential victim may receive gifts from the predator, including valuable, gifts such as the guarantee of high marks, or a college recommendation letter. The reliance step is mainly when the predatory behavior is distinguishable from well-meaning collegial behavior.
Isolation
As the grooming progresses, the predator might try to isolate the student. At school, this might mean late get togethers, tutoring sessions, meetings in the dormitory , one-on-one athletic training sessions, or other such circumstances.
Sexualization
The predator will start to de-sensitize the possible victim from reacting negatively to contact, caressing and other actions which lead to sexual interaction. This might begin with breaking the physical-touch barrier, or verbally, with suggestive language to gauge the victim’s reaction to the progression. This will escalate until the relationship transforms to one of a physical, sexual nature.
Maintenance
Once the sexual relationship is established, the predator will work to keep control of the student and the continuing abuse. The predator will probably try to manipulate the victim by introducing feelings of shame, or possibly threats, or employ the opposite strategy 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 Survivors
While the grooming increases as planned by the predator, the targeted student, being made to feel special, will probably respond positively to the actions. The predator, through these well-thought-out and performed grooming behaviors and activities, tries to re-calibrate and reduce the moral confines of the targeted student. Since the abuse survivor participated in this re-calibration, she often has deep feelings of guilt, initially blaming herself for the incident and hesitant to report it.
Furthermore, after the abuse has been revealed, victims of private school abuse are frequently subjected to discreet social pressure and intimidation, such as bullying, alienation from their peers, or retaliation from staff. Especially at boarding schools, where education is rigorous, competition can be intense and social circles small, victims of abuse might be readily isolated and socially abused. Subjected to those reactions, many boarding school abuse victims that have reported the abuse leave school. Others, faced with the prospect of such isolation and social persecution, report the abuse decades later. In either case, the impact can be significant and lasting.
Some abuse survivors suffer from long-term effects of the abuse that include depression, anxiety, ptsd, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse, disturbed sleeping and eating patterns, and difficulty creating and keeping healthy relationships. Individual therapy and support groups might assist survivors get past those effects.
Legally, a survivor of boarding school abuse could recover financial compensation from the abuser and more frequently, from the school for its failure to protect the student from the predator, as well as failures or deficiencies in its method of reviewing and replying to the victim’s report of the abuse. If you are a survivor of boarding school abuse and would like to confidentially share your situation and learn of your legal options at no cost or obligation, we are ready to speak with you. It is important for a survivor 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.
