Reporting Child Abuse

Contact the Center for Workplace Learning and Performance at: learning@psu.edu

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This training is designed to inform you about your responsibilities as either a Penn State employee or Authorized Adult (See Penn State Policies AD72 and AD39) in reporting child abuse and the steps involved in making a report. The training includes:

• Responsibilities under Penn State policy and PA Child Protective Services law
• Signs and indicators of child abuse
• Responding to a child who discloses abuse
• How to report suspected child abuse to the proper authorities

Information contained in the training will be reviewed and updated on an annual basis as laws or policies may change and to address best practices.

We all have a responsibility to create a safe community. Penn State developed this training to provide Penn State employees and Authorized Adults with the knowledge and skills they need to report child abuse.

All Penn State employees and Authorized Adults are required to complete Reporting Child Abuse training on an annual basis (See Penn State Policies AD72 and AD39). After you complete the training, you are required to maintain and/or produce a current certificate upon request. If you are classified as an Authorized Adult, you also need to share a copy of the certificate with your program director, manager, or supervisor.

Once you launch the "Building a Safe Penn State: Reporting Child Abuse" Training there is no way to save your place if you need to stop the training for any reason. Before you exit, take note of where you are in the training by looking at the navigation indicators at the bottom of the page. The next time you launch the training navigate directly to that page.

As outlined in Penn State Policy AD72, all employees, by virtue of their employment at Penn State, are required to take this training on an annual basis, and are required to report suspected child abuse.

Once you complete the training and pass the short assessment you will receive a certificate of completion. In order to pass you are required to obtain an 80 percent completion score, or higher, on the assessment at the end of the training.

You should always retain a copy of the certificate for your records. If you are classified as an Authorized Adult, you also need to share a copy of the certificate with your program director, manager, or supervisor.

Certification is required on a calendar year basis.

Each State has reporting laws for child abuse and neglect. If you are traveling out of state and will be working with minors, it is recommended that you become familiar with the specific state laws and procedures for reporting.

If you make a call to ChildLine to report suspected child abuse and no one answers, you should continue to call until someone picks up. ChildLine is available 24 hours a day, seven days per week, to receive reports of suspected child abuse. In addition, if you have any concerns or questions about how your call was handled, you can contact an Intake Managers or the Director at 717-783-1964.

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