Notification: Upon receipt (see definition above) of a complaint of hazing, harassing and/or bullying the designated employee shall promptly investigate (or cause to be investigated) to determine whether hazing, harassing and/or bullying occurred.

In addition, the designated employee shall provide a copy of this bullying procedure or verbal description, to the complainant.

The complainant’s parent(s) or guardian(s) shall be:

(1) promptly notified that a complaint of hazing, harassing and/or bullying has been filed and provided with a copy of this procedure, and
(2) notified in writing of the results of the complaint investigation. If the investigation results determine that bullying has occurred, the parents or guardians of the accused person will be notified.

All notification letters shall be subject to state and/or federal laws protecting the confidentiality of personally identifiable student information.

Investigation: Unless special circumstances are present and documented, such as reports to the Department for Children and Families (“DCF”) or the police, the designated employee shall, no later than one school day after the filing of a complaint, initiate or cause to be initiated, an investigation of the allegations.

The designee may assign another person to conduct the investigation; nothing herein shall be construed to preclude the designated employee from assigning him/herself or a school administrator as the investigator.

No person who is the subject of a complaint shall conduct such an investigation.

No later than five school days from the filing of the complaint with the designated employee, unless special circumstances are present and documented, the investigator shall make a determination as to whether or not hazing, harassing and/or bullying occurred.

The investigator’s conclusions shall be documented with copies provided both to the building administrator and the student’s discipline file.

When the determination concludes that an accused student has engaged in hazing, harassing and/or bullying the school administrator shall use his or her discretion to decide the appropriate disciplinary and/or remedial action.

In cases where the investigation has identified other conduct that may constitute a violation of other school disciplinary policies or codes of conduct, the designated employee shall report such conduct to the school administrator for action in accordance with relevant school policies

C. Internal Review: The results of the investigation conducted under B above may be challenged via an internal review.

Such a review can be requested by students, parents, or staff to the superintendent.

All levels of internal review of the investigator’s determination, and the issuance of a final decision, shall, unless special circumstances are present and documented by the District, be completed within 30 calendar days after the review is requested.

D. Action on a substantiated complaint: If, after investigation, the school finds that the alleged conduct occurred and that it constitutes bullying, the school shall take prompt and appropriate disciplinary and/or remedial action reasonably calculated to stop the bullying and prevent any recurrence of bullying. Such action may include, but not limited to, warning, reprimand, education, training and counseling, transfer, suspension, and/or expulsion of a student, and warning, reprimand, education, training and counseling, transfer, suspension and/or termination of an employee.

E. Alternative dispute resolution: At all stages of the investigation and determination process, school officials are encouraged to make available to complainants alternative dispute resolution methods, such as mediation, for resolving complaints.

The following should be considered before pursuing alternative dispute resolution methods:

(1) the nature of the accusations,
(2) the age of the complainant and the accused individual,
(3) the agreement of the complainant, and
(4) other relevant factors such as any disability of the target or accused individual, safety issues, the relationship between the target and accused individual, or any history of repeated misconduct/bullying by the accused individual.

However, ADR efforts may not be used in place of an investigation to determine whether or not the student’s conduct violated the school’s bullying policies, but rather, may serve as a remedy for addressing such violation, taking into account the above referenced factors.

F. Appeal: A person determined to be in violation of this policy and subjected to disciplinary action under it may appeal the determination and/or the disciplinary action(s) taken in the same manner as other disciplinary actions, in accordance with the District’s discipline policy or applicable statutes.

G. Retaliation: It is unlawful for any person to retaliate against a person who has filed a complaint of hazing, harassing and/or bullying or against a person who assists or participates in an investigation, proceeding or hearing related to the hazing, harassing and/or bullying complaint.

A person may violate this anti-retaliation provision regardless of whether the underlying complaint of hazing, harassing and/or bullying is substantiated.

Essex Middle School

Hazing, Harassment & Bullying - Prevention and Response

Prevention and Response Procedures

Harassment, Hazing, and Bullying Prevention Measures

Procedures Following a Report

What is Harassment, Hazing and Bullying?

Definition: Bullying

Definition: Harassment

Definition: Hazing