Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy considers the safety of our children to be a top priority. As an entity within the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida, we follow all guidelines with respect to Safeguarding God’s Children Training as required by the Episcopal Diocese. All school personnel (teachers, administrators, staff) complete Safeguarding God’s Children Training in addition to a successfully completing a Level II Criminal Background/Fingerprint screening.
In addition, as required by Florida Statutes Section 1006.061(1) and 1006.061(2), we post notices that (1) all employees and agents of this school have an affirmative duty to report all actual or suspected cases of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect and (2) the policies and procedures for reporting misconduct of instructional personnel, administrators, and other staff.
Finally, all school personnel are required to be trained on the Ethics in Education Policies and Procedures Standards, including:
- their duty to report all actual or suspected cases of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect,
- their duty and legal responsibility to report abuse or professional misconduct affecting the health, safety, and welfare of a student, and
- their immunity from civil liability when reporting such abuse in good faith.
Policies and Procedures
HTEA Standards of Ethical Conduct (View PDF) HTEA Misconduct Reporting Procedures
All employees have an obligation to report misconduct by instructional personnel and school administrators, which affects the health, safety, or welfare of a student.
Reports of misconduct by any employee should be made to Renee Smith, Executive Director of Human Resources at 321-723-8323 ext. 302. Reports of misconduct by any administrator should be made to the Head of School at 321-723-8323 ext. 300.
HTEA Child Abuse Reporting Procedures
If you have any belief, concern, or thought that you have witnessed, hear, or heard about a situation possibly involving abuse, neglect, or abandonment, you must do the following:
- Contact the appropriate school counselor.
- If you cannot reach the student’s school counselor, contact the Head of Lower School, Head of Senior High or Head of Junior High.
- The appropriate person will then discuss the situation with you to ensure that the appropriate reports, if any, are completed.
If a report is deemed necessary, the staff member (together with the support of the administrator) will be asked to make an oral report to the Florida Abuse Hotline Information System, using the single statewide toll-free telephone number: 1-800-96-ABUSE (1-800-962-2873).
An employee’s failure to report cases of misconduct or abuse carries a penalty up to and including termination. Protection for those who report abuse are described in Florida Statutes 39.203 and 768.095.