TEXAS (KMID/KPEJ) - The Jenna Quinn Law, a bill created by Texas U.S. Senator John Cornyn and a few other senators that looks to provide community-based prevention education and training for teachers, caregivers, and students, was signed into law earlier this week and now the senators who were involved are speaking about the importance of such education.

U.S. Senator John Cornyn, partnered with Democratic Senators Maggie Hassan and Ben Ray Luján, created the bill which would allow current grant funds to be used to train and educate students, teachers, caregivers, and other adults who work with children in a professional or volunteer capacity on how to prevent, recognize, and report child sexual abuse. The bill was named after Jenna Quinn, a Texan and child abuse survivor, and is modeled after successful reforms passed by the Texas Legislature in 2009, according to a release from Cornyn's office.

“Inspired by Texan Jenna Quinn, our landmark legislation modeled after successful reforms in Texas will ensure every student, teacher, and caregiver across the country has the tools to recognize and prevent abuse of vulnerable children,” said Senator Cornyn. “This law is years in the making, and I want to thank the bill’s namesake, Jenna Quinn, Representatives Moran and McCaul, and all of my colleagues in Congress for their support.”

According to the release, Jenna’s Law was unanimously passed by the Texas Legislature and became the first child sexual abuse prevention law in the U.S. to mandate K-12 trainings for students and school staff. The law was amended in 2017 to include sex trafficking prevention education in schools. More than half of all states have adopted a form of Jenna’s Law.

“Members of both parties are united in our mission to find additional ways to keep children safe from sexual abuse,” said Senator Hassan. “Our bipartisan legislation will help ensure that parents, teachers, and other community members receive evidence-based training to help protect children from sexual abuse."

The Jenna Quinn Law aims to do the following:

• Authorize federal grants to eligible entities for increasing evidence-based or informed training on sexual abuse prevention education and reporting to teachers and school employees, students, caregivers, and other adults who work with children.
• Ensure these grant recipients coordinate with local educational agencies to train students, professionals, and volunteers who work with students on sexual abuse prevention, recognition, and reporting.

“Every child deserves protection from abuse. Ensuring all adults, teachers, and caregivers are equipped with the knowledge to identify, prevent, and report child sexual abuse is a necessary and life-saving mechanism,” said Senator Luján. “Jenna’s Law is implemented across several states – including New Mexico – and should be federally recognized. I’m proud that this legislation was signed into law, bringing us one step closer to providing funding to train and educate students, teachers, and parents on best practices to prevent and report abuse.”