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To amend sections 3313.666 and 3313.667 of the | 1 |
Revised Code to enact the School Day Security and | 2 |
Anti-Bullying Act to require age-appropriate | 3 |
instruction, to the extent that federal or state | 4 |
funds are appropriated for this purpose, and | 5 |
parental notification of public schools' policies | 6 |
prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or bullying. | 7 |
Section 1. That sections 3313.666 and 3313.667 of the Revised | 8 |
Code be amended to read as follows: | 9 |
Sec. 3313.666. (A) As used in this section, "harassment, | 10 |
intimidation, or bullying" means either of the following: | 11 |
(1) Any intentional written, verbal, or physical act that a | 12 |
student has exhibited toward another particular student more than | 13 |
once and the behavior both: | 14 |
(a) Causes mental or physical harm to the other student; | 15 |
(b) Is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that it | 16 |
creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational | 17 |
environment for the other student. | 18 |
(2) Violence within a dating relationship. | 19 |
(B) The board of education of each city, local, exempted | 20 |
village, and joint vocational school district shall establish a | 21 |
policy prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or bullying. The | 22 |
policy shall be developed in consultation with parents, school | 23 |
employees, school volunteers, students, and community members. The | 24 |
policy shall include the following: | 25 |
(1) A statement prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or | 26 |
bullying of any student on school property or at school-sponsored | 27 |
events; | 28 |
(2) A definition of harassment, intimidation, or bullying | 29 |
that shall include the definition in division (A) of this section; | 30 |
(3) A procedure for reporting prohibited incidents; | 31 |
(4) A requirement that school personnel report prohibited | 32 |
incidents of which they are aware to the school principal or other | 33 |
administrator designated by the principal; | 34 |
(5) A requirement that | 35 |
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incident be notified and, to the extent permitted by section | 37 |
3319.321 of the Revised Code and the "Family Educational Rights | 38 |
and Privacy Act of 1974," 88 Stat. 571, 20 U.S.C. | 39 |
amended, have access to any written reports pertaining to the | 40 |
prohibited incident; | 41 |
(6) A procedure for documenting any prohibited incident that | 42 |
is reported; | 43 |
(7) A procedure for responding to and investigating any | 44 |
reported incident; | 45 |
(8) A strategy for protecting a victim from additional | 46 |
harassment, intimidation, or bullying, and from retaliation | 47 |
following a report; | 48 |
(9) A disciplinary procedure for any student guilty of | 49 |
harassment, intimidation, or bullying, which shall not infringe on | 50 |
any student's rights under the first amendment to the Constitution | 51 |
of the United States; | 52 |
(10) A requirement that the district administration | 53 |
semiannually provide the president of the district board a written | 54 |
summary of all reported incidents and post the summary on its web | 55 |
site, if the district has a web site, to the extent permitted by | 56 |
section 3319.321 of the Revised Code and the "Family Educational | 57 |
Rights and Privacy Act of 1974," 88 Stat. 571, 20 U.S.C. | 58 |
1232g, as amended. | 59 |
(C) Each board's policy shall appear in any student | 60 |
handbooks, and in any of the publications that set forth the | 61 |
comprehensive rules, procedures, and standards of conduct for | 62 |
schools and students in the district. Information regarding the | 63 |
policy shall be incorporated into employee training materials. | 64 |
(D) (1) To the extent that state or federal funds are | 65 |
appropriated for this purpose, each board shall require that all | 66 |
students enrolled in the district annually be provided with | 67 |
age-appropriate instruction, as determined by the board on the | 68 |
board's policy, including a discussion of the consequences for | 69 |
violations of the policy. | 70 |
(2) Each board shall require that once each school year a | 71 |
written statement describing the policy and the consequences for | 72 |
violations of the policy be sent to each student's custodial | 73 |
parent or guardian. The statement may be sent with regular student | 74 |
report cards. | 75 |
(E) A school district employee, student, or volunteer shall | 76 |
be individually immune from liability in a civil action for | 77 |
damages arising from reporting an incident in accordance with a | 78 |
policy adopted pursuant to this section if that person reports an | 79 |
incident of harassment, intimidation, or bullying promptly in good | 80 |
faith and in compliance with the procedures as specified in the | 81 |
policy. | 82 |
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nothing in this section prohibits a victim from seeking redress | 84 |
under any other provision of the Revised Code or common law that | 85 |
may apply. | 86 |
| 87 |
a substantive legal right for any person. | 88 |
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policy adopted under this section to include violence within a | 91 |
dating relationship. | 92 |
Sec. 3313.667. (A) Any school district may form bullying | 93 |
prevention task forces, programs, and other initiatives involving | 94 |
volunteers, parents, law enforcement, and community members. | 95 |
(B) To the extent that state or federal funds are | 96 |
appropriated for these purposes, each school district shall | 97 |
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district's harassment, intimidation, or bullying policy adopted | 99 |
pursuant to section 3313.666 of the Revised Code to school | 100 |
employees and volunteers who have direct contact with students. | 101 |
Time spent by school employees in the training, workshops, or | 102 |
courses shall apply towards any state- or district-mandated | 103 |
continuing education requirements. | 104 |
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(C) This section does not create a new cause of action or a | 107 |
substantive legal right for any person. | 108 |
Section 2. That existing sections 3313.666 and 3313.667 of | 109 |
the Revised Code are hereby repealed. | 110 |
Section 3. Sections 1 and 2 of this act shall take effect six | 111 |
months after the effective date of this section. | 112 |
Section 4. This act shall be known as the "School Day | 113 |
Security and Anti-Bullying Act." The purpose of this act is to | 114 |
provide a positive school day for each student and a school | 115 |
environment where every student feels safe. | 116 |