The federal government has launched a nationwide operation targeting school administrators alleged to have failed to report teacher predators in the wake of allegations against Peoria Unified School District (PUSD) leadership.
PUSD has been accused of failing to report two Centennial High School teachers, Haley Beck and Angela Burlaka, who have been accused of committing sexual misconduct against one or more students.
The district also faces a $20 million civil action alleging school officials repeatedly ignored warning signs and failed their mandated reporting duties.
Amid this teacher predator scandal, key PUSD leadership have apparently jumped ship. The superintendent of PUSD sought employment at another district out of state, and the principal of CHS resigned.
And, an interim superintendent anticipated to provide accountability and transparency into the teacher crisis was allegedly forced to resign. The district replaced the allegedly ousted interim superintendent with the human resources chief who oversaw the district’s internal investigation into administrator handling of Beck and Burlaka.
The former president of the district’s governing board was voted out by a board majority after pushing for greater investigation and transparency efforts into the Beck and Burlaka scandal.
Just recently, Congressman Abe Hamadeh sent a letter to the Secretary of Education Linda McMahon notifying her of the alleged systemic leadership failures, mandatory reporting breakdowns, and obstruction of law enforcement within PUSD and across K-12 public education as a whole.
Hamadeh’s June 29, 2026, letter detailed how PUSD’s “administrative pushback” required the Peoria Police Department to serve the district with search warrants in order to obtain internal records and personnel files necessary to conduct their investigations into Beck and Burlaka.
“[T]he administrative action of PUSD leadership point to a critical, systemic vulnerability in student safety protocols that warrants federal scrutiny,” said Hamadeh.
Hamadeh asked the Department of Education (ED) to provide insights on school district cooperation with law enforcement, accountability for administrators who fail to report predatory behavior, and protocols for checking institutional self-preservation tendencies by school districts amid student safety and public transparency concerns.
On Friday, less than two weeks after receiving Hamadeh’s letter, ED chief McMahon announced an investigation into 20 school districts who may have failed to properly address staff-on-student sexual misconduct.
ED didn’t disclose which 20 school districts were under investigation, only referencing that these districts had submitted Civil Rights Data Collection reporting for the 2023-24 fiscal years suggesting inappropriate responses to staff-on-student sexual misconduct.
The department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will lead the investigations into the 20 school districts and determine whether any or all of the districts lack the required policies and procedures to ensure data collection and reporting on staff-on-student sexual misconduct allegations and incidents.
McMahon’s announcement alleged a “troubling and recurring pattern” of school administrators protecting sexual predators.
“Our schools must protect America’s children. Parents should never have to wonder whether their kids’ school employs and protects sexual predators,” said McMahon. “Schools that receive federal funding have a duty to protect students, report sexual misconduct honestly, and follow the law. Through this initiative, we are holding school districts accountable because every child deserves to learn in a safe environment free from sexual abuse and harassment.”
Additionally, OCR issued guidance to federally funded educational institutions on obligations under federal law for responding to sexual misconduct.
The guidance reminds schools that they must respond promptly and appropriately to allegations of sexual harassment and assault, prohibit new employment for individuals believed or known to have engaged in sexual misconduct with a student, report instances of sexual misconduct against students, and investigate allegations of sexual misconduct in addition to law enforcement referrals.
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