Citing “alarming” rates of assaults on teachers, the Georgia Federation of Teachers has a suggestion for lawmakers: Hold parents accountable for their children’s actions.
The union unveiled the Georgia Parent Accountability Act last week. It would penalize parents — through fines, required community service at schools or possible jail time — if their child commits an act of violence against a teacher. The federation did not say how much jail time.
The act would also require universal mental health screenings for all students in sixth through ninth grade, de-escalation training for all school staff and parenting classes for families of repeat offenders.
“When a child strikes a teacher, it is a reflection of the lessons learned or not learned within their own household,” Verdaillia Turner, president of the Georgia Federation of Teachers, said from the steps of the Georgia Capitol last week. “Parents must be held accountable.”
Credit: Cassidy Alexander
Credit: Cassidy Alexander
Public schools in Georgia reported 755 instances of students being disciplined for an act of violence against a teacher in the 2023-2024 school year, a review of state data by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution found. That’s almost double the 390 instances reported in the 2019-2020 school year.
This follows a national trend of increased levels of violence and harassment against educators after the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Psychological Association reported last year.
Turner pointed to a recent incident in the DeKalb County School District in which three students were charged with battery after they allegedly initiated a physical altercation with a teacher. The incident was recorded and shared on social media.
But DeKalb Superintendent Devon Horton said at a news conference last week there’s more to the situation than meets the eye and he doesn’t believe the students involved should be criminalized. When asked about the union’s proposal, Horton said he’s never had a situation where he felt like it was the parents’ fault.
“Those golden days of when you can tell a student to sit down and they sit down, that’s not the case anymore,” he said. “This is about touching hearts first.”
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
The district is providing mentors to at-risk students, working to teach students conflict resolution skills and training teachers in de-escalation techniques. DeKalb County reported six instances of students being disciplined for violence against a teacher in both the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years, according to state data.
A national study by the American Psychological Association found that 80% of surveyed teachers reported verbal or threatening aggression from students after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, and 56% reported physical violence from students at least once during the school year. Researchers recommended district and school leaders engage educators and other school personnel in ongoing discussions regarding school practices, discipline, placement, staffing and school climate.
“Today we’re in a state of urgency,” said retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Otha Thornton, a past president of the National Parent Teacher Association and a Georgia resident who helped write the Georgia Parent Accountability Act. “These aren’t isolated incidents — these are symptoms of systemic failures demanding immediate action.”
The idea of holding parents accountable when their children break the law has gained traction in Georgia in the last year.
The father of the teenager charged with shooting and killing four people at Apalachee High School last year was charged in connection to the crime — the first prosecution of its kind in Georgia and only the second nationally. Similarly, lawmakers considered whether to charge the parents of students who make threats against schools. That idea did not become a law during the 2025 legislative session.
The Georgia Federation of Teachers is hoping for bipartisan support for its Georgia Parent Accountability Act. Lawmakers closed the 2025 Legislative session in April but will reconvene in January.
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