When Cara Courchesne walked into her daughter’s school in August, she came face to face with a man that she says sexually harassed her 20 years earlier.

She did a quick Google search and found that the man, who now worked at the school, had resigned from another school district amid allegations of sexual harassment. She also found that he had been recently promoted to a role that works directly with students.

“How did this happen?” Courchesne wondered.

After back-and-forth correspondences with her daughter’s school district, she said, it was clear that the man’s alleged conduct was not brought up in any hiring discussions. So she connected with state Sen. Margaret Rotundo, D-Lewiston, and together they drafted LD 2192.

The proposed bill would require applicants for school positions in Maine to disclose all investigations they were subject to under previous employers, as well as by state licensing agencies, law enforcement and the Department of Health and Human Services, for a host of potential misconduct, according to the bill. The information would stay between employers.

The alleged misconduct listed under the bill includes use of alcohol, illegal drugs, abuse,
inappropriate contact, stalking, harassment, and sexual exploitation “even if the investigation resulted in a finding that the allegations were false or not substantiated.”

A public hearing on the bill is scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday in the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee meeting room at the Cross Building in Augusta.

The bill would allow school districts to request information about applicants from the former school district, through the Department of Education, and require school districts to answer any such request.

“This wasn’t just about protecting my daughter, but protecting children and families throughout the state, as well as the educators who work in our schools who are absolutely impacted by harassment, and worse, at work,” Courchesne said.

Currently, most internal employer investigations are covered by personnel confidentiality and not disclosed to potential employers unless there is a finding that resulted in disciplinary action.

Most school employment applications ask potential employers if they had their teaching licenses revoked or suspended; if they were fired or failed to be rehired; if they’re a registered sex offender; or if they were found guilty of anything more serious than a traffic violation.

“The superintendent at school A, or the HR department at school A, should be able to call school B and say, ‘We have this applicant who is applying and they have gone through the process, (they) seem great. We just want some more information,'” Courchesne said.

Among the provisions of the bill is one that would require schools to notify the Department of Education if an employee who is being investigated leaves employment before the investigation is completed. Another is that a school district must complete an investigation once initiated.

At least 12 states make teacher disciplinary records public. As of 2024, at least 18 states have passed laws aimed at enhanced screening of new school employees for sexual misconduct and abuse. Those laws include prohibiting schools from aiding and abetting school employees who engaged in sexual misconduct with securing positions in other schools by using confidentiality agreements that hide the misconduct.

Courchesne said she wants parents, including herself, to feel safe sending their children to school. She said she hopes that if the bill passes, it will also make a difference for school employees who may be on the receiving end of the harassment.

“Nothing happened to my kid, but the fact that it could have is a concern,” she said. “The status quo cannot continue to stand this way.”