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To amend section 3313.666 of the Revised Code to | 1 |
require that school anti-bullying policies | 2 |
prohibit harassment, intimidation, or bullying | 3 |
that is based on any actual or perceived trait or | 4 |
characteristic of a student. | 5 |
Section 1. That section 3313.666 of the Revised Code be | 6 |
amended to read as follows: | 7 |
Sec. 3313.666. (A) As used in this section | 8 |
(1) "Harassment, intimidation, or bullying" means either of | 9 |
the following: | 10 |
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a student has exhibited toward another particular student more | 12 |
than once that is based on any actual or perceived trait or | 13 |
characteristic of a student, and the behavior both: | 14 |
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it creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational | 17 |
environment for the other student. | 18 |
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(2) "Trait or characteristic of a student" includes but is | 20 |
not limited to age, color, creed, national origin, race, religion, | 21 |
marital status, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, | 22 |
physical attributes, physical or mental ability or disability, | 23 |
ancestry, political party preference, political belief, | 24 |
socioeconomic status, or familial status. | 25 |
(B) The board of education of each city, local, exempted | 26 |
village, and joint vocational school district shall establish a | 27 |
policy prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or bullying. The | 28 |
policy shall be developed in consultation with parents, school | 29 |
employees, school volunteers, students, and community members. The | 30 |
policy shall include the following: | 31 |
(1) A statement prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or | 32 |
bullying of any student on school property or at school-sponsored | 33 |
events; | 34 |
(2) A definition of harassment, intimidation, or bullying | 35 |
that shall include the definition in division (A) of this section; | 36 |
(3) A procedure for reporting prohibited incidents; | 37 |
(4) A requirement that school personnel report prohibited | 38 |
incidents of which they are aware to the school principal or other | 39 |
administrator designated by the principal; | 40 |
(5) A requirement that parents or guardians of any student | 41 |
involved in a prohibited incident be notified and, to the extent | 42 |
permitted by section 3319.321 of the Revised Code and the "Family | 43 |
Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974," 88 Stat. 571, 20 | 44 |
U.S.C. | 45 |
pertaining to the prohibited incident; | 46 |
(6) A procedure for documenting any prohibited incident that | 47 |
is reported; | 48 |
(7) A procedure for responding to and investigating any | 49 |
reported incident; | 50 |
(8) A strategy for protecting a victim from additional | 51 |
harassment, intimidation, or bullying, and from retaliation | 52 |
following a report; | 53 |
(9) A disciplinary procedure for any student guilty of | 54 |
harassment, intimidation, or bullying, which shall not infringe on | 55 |
any student's rights under the first amendment to the Constitution | 56 |
of the United States; | 57 |
(10) A requirement that the district administration | 58 |
semiannually provide the president of the district board a written | 59 |
summary of all reported incidents and post the summary on its web | 60 |
site, if the district has a web site, to the extent permitted by | 61 |
section 3319.321 of the Revised Code and the "Family Educational | 62 |
Rights and Privacy Act of 1974," 88 Stat. 571, 20 U.S.C. | 63 |
1232g, as amended. | 64 |
(C) Each board's policy shall appear in any student | 65 |
handbooks, and in any of the publications that set forth the | 66 |
comprehensive rules, procedures, and standards of conduct for | 67 |
schools and students in the district. Information regarding the | 68 |
policy shall be incorporated into employee training materials. | 69 |
(D) A school district employee, student, or volunteer shall | 70 |
be individually immune from liability in a civil action for | 71 |
damages arising from reporting an incident in accordance with a | 72 |
policy adopted pursuant to this section if that person reports an | 73 |
incident of harassment, intimidation, or bullying promptly in good | 74 |
faith and in compliance with the procedures as specified in the | 75 |
policy. | 76 |
(E) Except as provided in division (D) of this section, | 77 |
nothing in this section prohibits a victim from seeking redress | 78 |
under any other provision of the Revised Code or common law that | 79 |
may apply. | 80 |
(F) This section does not create a new cause of action or a | 81 |
substantive legal right for any person. | 82 |
(G) Not later than | 83 |
84 | |
policy adopted under this section to include violence within a | 85 |
dating relationship. | 86 |
Section 2. That existing section 3313.666 of the Revised | 87 |
Code is hereby repealed. | 88 |