How should principal handle teacher’s vague sexual harassment report? 

Q: I’m a principal, and one of my teachers recently confided in me that she’s been sexually harassed by a male colleague. She said that he’s been asking her to perform sexual acts and making sexual comments. As she spoke, I had this gut sense that she’d been sexually assaulted and asked her if he’d made any unwanted physical advances. That’s when she shut down. She also wouldn’t tell me who’d been bothering her. I’m a male principal and recognize that it’s a sensitive issue, so I didn’t push it. She asked me to “write down” her report. I told her I would, but I explained that documenting wouldn’t do much good if I didn’t have a name.

In a way, her disclosure explains a lot. Staff members have spotted her crying in the bathroom. She’s been hovering around me, in particular, and I wonder now if she’s been trying to get up the nerve to talk to me. She’s also been much more intense and has needed more validation and reassurance than usual. I don’t know if it’s all related, but she’s definitely been off — and not in a good way. I want to support her, and I also want to make sure the school is a safe, harassment-free zone for my whole staff. Sorry to be crass, but if one of my teachers is an a**hole, he needs to go. How should I have handled this situation, and what do I do now?

A:  This is a bad situation, but the good news is that this teacher trusts you. Even if she didn’t want to share the extent of the abuse, her decision to talk to you at all is unusual. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) estimates that 25 to 85 percent of women have experienced workplace harassment, but they only report 25 percent of incidents. Victims might be reluctant to come forward for a range of reasons, from concern they won’t be believed to fear of retribution. Their fear is well-founded and valid. An EEOC study found that 75 percent of employees who spoke out against workplace mistreatment faced some form of retaliation.