While the Catholic Church continues to wrestle with the ramifications of decades of sexual misconduct by some priests, another institution responsible for even more children has its own shameful record of protecting child molesters -- public school systems.
As many as 10 percent of public school students are targets of unwanted sexual advances, and the perpetrators are often popular, award-winning teachers, a new report commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education states.
"Educator sexual misconduct is woefully understudied," concludes Charol Shakeshaft, the Hofstra University professor who conducted the study using student surveys.
"We have scant data on incidence and even less on descriptions of predators and targets. There are many questions that call for answers."