A New York Focus investigation finds that the state can take up to seven years to resolve complaints against educators. By Bianca Fortis In February 2023, 29-year-old Samantha Farber walked into Room 169 of the Education Building Annex in Albany, prepared to finally testify in an administrative hearing against her former high school teacher, years after she’d reported him for inappropriate behavior at Long Island’s Lawrence Woodmere Academy.  “I was nauseous,” Farber, now a therapist, said. “I was just exhausted. It was just a lot. It was my first time seeing him in well over 10 years.”

 For more than three hours, Farber recounted how what started as a friendly relationship between teacher and student escalated to late-night private emails, notes left in her backpack and at her car, and his hands on her shoulders or thigh.  Farber’s former teacher had been reported to the state in February 2019 after local news outlets covered her story. In April of 2024 — more than five years later — the state notified Farber that the teacher had surrendered his license, precluding him from teaching in public schools within New York state. The case was closed before a formal determination was issued.  Farber’s long wait isn’t unusual: Due to understaffing, lengthy investigations, and scheduling challenges, as well as delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, it can take the state Education Department up to seven years to resolve some complaints against educators, a New York Focus investigation has found.

 The agency said there is no meaningful way to quantify the average amount of time it takes to close a case, and that there are a number of factors that can delay the process. The slow grind has contributed to a backlog of more than 1,360 open complaints as of December.  “They’re so backed up on all of these things that it’s just ridiculous,” Farber said. “It’s not fair to anyone. It’s not fair to teachers, either — when they’re innocent, that’s not fair, either, right? Because you’re just pending that investigation.”