BULLYING: FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW

B ullying is the most common form of violence in our society

At least 10% of all children are bullied

Between 15% and 30% of all students are bullies or victims

55% of 8-11 yr. olds say teasing and bullying is a “big problem” for people their age 68% of yr. olds say teasing and bullying is a “big problem” for people their age

74% of 8-11 yr olds say kids at their school get teased or bullied 86% of yr. olds say kids at their school get teased or bullied

Every day approx. 160,000 children miss school due to fear of attack or intimidation by other students

Every month 250,000 children report they are physically assaulted by other children

Between 1994 and 1999 there were 253 violent deaths in schools Bullying is often a factor

Only 1/3 of elementary students report bullying to an adult and fewer secondary students report it

A student identified as a bully by the age of 8 is six times more likely to become involved in criminal behavior

1 in 4 boys who were bullies in 6 th -9 th grade has a criminal record by age 24

Sources: Nat’l Association of School Psychologists, *** N.J. Child Assault Prevention Project ( CAP) *** Nickelodeon/Talking with Kids National Survey of Parents and Kidswww.naspcenter.org

LGBT Harassment THE LAWS and $$ THE COST $$

TITLE IX Prohibits discrimination based on gender in educational institutions Does not prohibit LGBT harassment Prohibits anti-gay harassment that is sexual Prohibits harassment based on sex stereotype

Supreme Court Davis v Monroe County Bd. of Ed, 1999 Districts liable under Title IX for $$ damages for peer sexual harassment if there was: actual notice of harassment to person w/ authority to end harassment Deliberate indifference Denial of educational opportunity

Equal Protection Clause of U.S. Constitution Courts have held: Must treat harassment complaints of boys and girls the same Must have “rational basis” for discriminating against LGBT students School Districts & Administrators may be liable for damages if they ignore harassment

Equal Protection Cases Nasbony v Podlesny- 7 th Cir. Wis, 1996 $900,000 Flores v Morgan Hill S.D.– 9 th Cir. CA, 2003 $ 1.1 Million

$$$ More Costs $$$ $ 130,000 Visalia Unified S. D. CA(’02) $ 451,000 Washoe County S. D. Nev.(‘02) $ 45,000 Banning Unified S.D. CA(’03)

$220,000 Spencer County S.D. KY(’00) $135,000 Somerset Ind. S.D. KY (’00) $312,000 Titusville S. D. PA( ’02)

Equal Access Act Public Schools that permit any non-curricular student group to meet MUST permit ALL student groups to meet including Gay-Straight Alliances

White County S.D. GA. School had a “limited open forum” Would not allow GSA to meet Settlement $168,000 legal fees to ACLU $10,000 to student plaintiffs Implement anti-bullying program

N. J. Laws/Regulations Law Against Discrimination (LAD) Protected categories include Sexual Orientation Bias Crimes Act Increases level of crime if purpose was to intimidate a person/group because of race, religion… sexual orientation

Uniform Memorandum of Agreement Between Education & Law Enforcement Staff is required to report to principal & superintendent suspected Hate Crimes & Bias-Related Acts Not limited to school grounds/hours

Administration’s Responsibility Hate Crimes “promptly” notify police & County Bias Crimes officer “immediately” notify police of violent acts

Bias- Related Acts “Presumptive Reporting” considering: nature/seriousness of conduct safety risk posed by the conduct police may have other related information the act could escalate or result in retaliation

Anti Bullying Law No harassment, intimidation or bullying Protected categories include: Sexual Orientation Gender identity and expression Also applies to: School-sponsored events School Bus

Bullying/harassment/intimidation harm to student or property student has reasonable fear of harm to person/property or insulting or demeaning the student causing substantial disruption to the orderly operation of the school

Content of Policy Statement Prohibiting Bullying Definition of Harassment/Bullying Behavior expected of Students Appropriate Remedial Actions for Bully Consequences- Students and Staff Reporting Procedures inc. anonymously

Reporting Bullying Incidents Employee, volunteer or student who has Witnessed or Has reliable information SHALL report it to the school official designated in the Board Policy Reporting provides immunity for staff

Policy Requirements cont’d Procedures for Prompt Investigations, inc. investigator Range of Ways to Respond to Complaint Support Victim Corrective Actions for Systemic Problems Prohibition Against Reprisals Consequences for False Reporting Procedures for Distribution of Policy

Distribution of Policy Annual Distribution to Staff Students Parents Annual process for discussing policy with students

Also Required Annual Review of Staff Training Needs Training Consistent with Review Annual Review/Update of Code of Student Conduct

Title 6A:7 Managing Equality and Equity in Education Requires equal access to all educational programs regardless of race, religion … affectional or sexual orientation or “ perceived, presumed or identified by others as having such an orientation”

N.J. Div. on Civil Rights L.W. v Toms River Reg. Schools BOE ( July ’04) Student harassed in Middle and H.S. $ 10,000 penalty to Board of Ed. $ 50,000 emotional damages to LW $ 10,000 emotional damages to mother Revise policies/handbooks Post complaint procedures Training for staff Applies the LAD standard

Federal Title IX Standard Actual notice to person with authority Deliberate indifference Harassment is so severe and persistent as to deny the student an educational benefit N.J. Law Against Discrimination Should have known that harassment was severe & pervasive enough to make a reasonable student find the school environment hostile Appealed to Appellate Court

Appellate Court Decision Right to file a claim under the LAD- YES Employer Standard not Title IX- YES $50,000 to student- YES $10,000 to mother- NO Dissemination of materials & training specific to LGBT non-discrimination- NO Training via Anti Bullying Law-NO Appealed to NJ Supreme Court

N.J. Supreme Court Decision Can file peer harassment claim under the LAD Apply “knew or should have known” standard( LAD) Provides guidelines for determining if District made “reasonable” efforts to stop the harassment

Reasonableness Standard for District Actions District does not have to eliminate all harassment. Must stop severe and pervasive harassment Consider Totality of Circumstances not just impact of separate acts Lists multiple criteria to be considered “ The environment created may exceed the sum of the individual episodes”

US 3 rd Circuit Decision Aug Shore Regional v P.S. o/b/o P.S. Student harassed in elementary school Student harassed in middle school Reg. H.S. said they would protect student Parents sent son to another public H.S. Court decision: District must reimburse parents for tuition to other HS.

What You Can Do?

Administrator “Do List” Consistently enforce the equity policy Inform students/staff/ coaches/parents Take allegations seriously- investigate Involve Aff. Action Off./Police as required Protect victim/prevent retaliation Discipline offenders appropriately Follow up/Support victim Support GSAs

Everyone’s “To Do” List Be a Role Model of Acceptance Use Inclusive Language Make LGBT people visible- BB’s, Current Events Challenge Biased or Demeaning Language Challenge Harassment/name-calling Support GSAs Be an Ally

Don’t… …Ignore “casual” comments …Let harasser & victim “work it out “alone …Promise complete confidentiality …Assume heterosexuality …Use “dangerous words”

Dangerous Words People in our school wouldn’t do that That’s just the way he/she jokes It’s just teasing- no big deal What did you expect? You said…you dress… Just ignore it No one has complained, I can’t do anything

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

LW v Toms River S.D. Aug “ In past decades, the schools have made great strides in teaching children to reject racial, ethnic and religious biases they may have learned elsewhere …(P)rotection from discrimination based on sexual orientation warrants similar educational efforts…. Our school districts are in the best position to educate students, in an age-appropriate manner, with the goal of eradicating sexual orientation discrimination from our schools.” N.J. Director of Division on Civil Rights

Are Schools Safe for LGBT Students?

California Safe Schools Coalition & 4-H Center for Youth Development, U of Davis Study of 2 reports California Healthy Kids Survey ,000 7 th, 9 th & 11 th grade students Preventing School Harassment Survey 2003 Targeted to LGBT students available to all middle & HS students;

91% of students have heard students make negative comments based on sexual orientation

44% of students have heard teachers make negative comments based on sexual orientation 16% of students have heard the comments “sometimes” or “often”

43% of students have heard teachers or staff stop anti gay comments by students either “sometimes” or “ often”.

46% of students said their schools were not safe for LGBT students

(Gender non-Conformity) 53% of students said school was unsafe for “guys who aren’t as masculine as other guys” 34% of students said school was unsafe for “girls who aren’t as feminine as other girls” 27% of the students reported being harassed for gender non-conformity

7.5 % of students reported being harassed based on actual or perceived sexual orientation 2 out of 3 LGBT students reported being harassed based on actual or perceived sexual orientation 7.5 % of all middle/HS students in US would be 200,000 students

The impact of the harassment on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students* *and those perceived to be

LGBT students are more likely to miss school and have lower grades

LGBT Students are at a Greater Risk for Depression and Suicide

Greater Risk for Substance Abuse

More likely to be a victim & carry weapons

“From Teasing to Torment: School Climate in America, A Survey of Students and Teachers” GLSEN 2005 Harris Interactive Survey 3,400 students age Over 1,000 secondary school teachers Questions on Bullying and Harassment

Major findings for students 65% were verbally or physically harassed in the past year for some reason 39% were frequently harassed due to their physical appearance 33% were frequently harassed due to their perceived or actual sexual orientation 52% frequently hear homophobic remarks 69% frequently hear “that’s so gay”

LGBT students 3 times as likely to not feel safe in school 90% of LGBT teens were harassed for some reason vs 62% of NON LGBT teens

GLSEN National School Climate Survey 2005

75% of LGBT students have heard homophobic remarks frequently or often

64.1% of LGBT students were verbally harassed based on sexual orientation 45.5% of LGBT students were verbally harassed based on gender expression

37.8% of LGBT students were physically harassed based on sexual orientation 17.6% were physically assaulted

26.1% of LGBT students were physically harassed based on gender expression 11.8% were physically assaulted

Reporting Harassment 58.6% never told the school 55.1% never told their parents When Reported 43.6% said their parents took no action 56.2% said school actions were ineffective

The Cost

Academic Cost LGBT students 5 times more likely have skipped school for safety reasons in last month LGBT students 2 times as likely to report they were not planning post-graduate education

Achievement of Harassed LGBT Students More Frequent Physical Assaults 2.6 GPA Less Frequent Physical Assaults 3.1 GPA

Economic Cost