Hannah Ross, a Kentucky woman, has come forward to expose how she was groomed and abused by a trusted adult—a teacher and bus driver—starting when she was a middle school student. Their relationship escalated over years, becoming sexual by her sophomore year of high school, and culminated in marriage on her 18th birthday. Ross kept letters from the abuser that reveal the manipulative nature of the grooming, and she now advocates for stronger legal protections in Kentucky, which currently lacks statutes criminalizing grooming.

Ross is urging lawmakers to pass a bill defining and outlawing grooming, with Kentucky Representative Marianne Proctor drafting legislation targeting adults who engage in grooming behaviors with minors under 14. Ross also calls for mandatory grooming education for school staff, waiting periods before teachers can date former students, and accountability for schools ignoring warning signs. Motivated by recent similar abuse allegations in local schools, Ross has publicly shared her story and launched a petition to push for these reforms to better protect children from abuse.