On June 27, 2012, the Illinois Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act (ANCRA) was amended to mandate that all personnel of higher education institutions report cases of suspected child abuse or neglect to the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). This includes all employees at Highland Community College (including student workers) and volunteers. Child abuse is the mistreatment of a child under the age of 18 by a parent, caretaker, someone living in their home or someone who works with or around children. The mistreatment must cause injury or put the child at risk of physical injury. Child abuse can be physical (such as burns or broken bones) or sexual (such as fondling or incest). Neglect happens when a parent or responsible caretaker fails to provide adequate supervision, food, clothing, shelter or other basics for a child.
Highland’s policy, FAQ’s, and reporting procedure can be found at G:\General\HR-Payroll Resources for Employees\Mandated Reporter Abused and Neglected Child Reporting.
Additional information on preventing and recognizing abuse can be found below.
DCFS Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect