So, you drop your child off at school in the morning and head to work/school/run errands, etc. You don't think twice about it. When you pick up your child, you head home, eat dinner, and prepare for bed. While getting your child undressed you notice a new bruise, scratch, or your child complains his/her head hurts, shoulder hurts, etc. What to do? The school didn't say anything to you about your child being hurt. So you ask the child, but, alas, your child is just a toddler and barely speaks or your child's stories don't always tell the full truth. You have heard rumors about mistreatment of other children in the school, but you just don't want to believe that someone would actually hurt YOUR child. The teachers appear nice, but deep down inside, you wonder why there are so many rumors of mistreatment of children at the school. What to do? Well, take a deep breath, and call CPS! If you have already dealt with the teacher and the principal directly, yet still do not believe that your child is being well cared for, by all means SPEAK UP. You can call CPS for even SUSPECTED child abuse. Your child does not have to come home with a black eye or a broken arm for it to be suspected abuse. The fact that the teacher(s) did not even bother to tell you your child had been hurt should tell you two things. 1. They have some thing to hide and/or 2. They didn't see it happen or just didn't care enough to take the time to tell you your child had been hurt. There is plenty of information on the Maryland Department of Human Resources web page on how to report abuse or suspected abuse. The phone number to call is 240-777-4417. They will take your call 24 hours a day. So, if you can't sleep at 3am because you believe your child is being harmed at the hands of the school, feel free to call. The website explains what steps will be taken after the report. You can also fax a written complaint to 240-777-4258. You will need to provide the child's name, age, and what the allegation is. The teacher's name that is suspected as well as the school's address. If your child has more than one teacher by all means provide all names. You will have to provide a detailed report of what happened. They will let you know if they need any more information. The report is not an accusation. What it does is provide a link to services for the alleged abuser(s). After a report is made, an investigation will happen. Even if your specific case has no findings or proof of abuse, it will raise a red flag. If there is an issue with mistreatment of children whether it be at a private home or in a day care or school, even if at first no proof is to be found, the fact that numerous reports are being made against said offender will in fact cause alarm, and lead to perhaps an ongoing investigation. These are children. They can not fight for themselves. We as parents/adults must fight for them. Protect their innocence and speak when they can not. If you truly believe your child's odd behavior, regular bumps and bruises, etc. are not coming from just being a kid, then speak up. Make the call. The only harm is the harm that continues to be placed on children in the care of those they trust because no one would speak up for them. God protects our children, but he also made parents to help do His work as well. **Information provided is for Montgomery County only. You can find a list of numbers and addresses on the website for the Maryland Department of Human Resources if you reside in another county.**
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