Checklist for a Comprehensive Approach to Addressing Harassment
·Board members, district administrators, and the superintendent recognize the urgency of the problem of unlawful harassment and hate crime, identify people and agencies that can help them develop effective prevention and response strategies, and compile a library of useful materials
·School officials select personnel to work on creating an effective anti-harassment program in consultation with parents, students, and community groups
·Compliance coordinators are appointed and trained
·School personnel assess the school climate to determine the prevalence and types of harassment that may exist and the potential for hate-motivated violence
·School district adopts a written anti-harassment policy or reviews and revises existing policies for accuracy, clarity and legal compliance; the policy is clearly communicated to all members of the school community; and school personnel and students are held accountable for their actions
·School district develops a formal grievance procedure and takes steps to make sure it is working properly
·Instructional personnel use or supplement the district's curriculum and pedagogical strategies to foster respect and appreciation for diversity
·School sites institute, improve, or expand age appropriate student activities to prevent or reduce prejudice and conflict
·School district and individual school sites institute specific measures to respond immediately and effectively when harassment occurs to stop the harassment and prevent recurrence
·School officials flexibly apply response mechanisms to both the victim and the perpetrator, taking into account the parties' ages and the context of the behavior
·School personnel continually monitor the school climate and promptly address problems that could lead to harassment or violence or that indicate that harassment could be occurring
·Appropriate school officials become familiar with pertinent civil and criminal laws at the state, local, and federal levels, so that they are able to recognize possible civil rights violations, hate crimes and other criminal acts
·Schools develop guidelines and procedures for collaboration with law enforcement officials, make appropriate referrals to outside agencies, and designate liaison personnel
·Crisis intervention plans are in place to minimize the possibility of violence or disruption of the educational process
·District-level personnel and individual school sites form continuing partnerships with parents and the community to prevent hate crimes and harassing behaviors
·Staff training and professional development programs support the district's anti-harassment efforts
·All harassment incidents are carefully documented and incidents are reported to outside authorities as required
·District regularly assesses the effectiveness of its anti-harassment efforts
Source: Protecting Students from Harassment and Hate Crime, A Guide for Schools
US Dept of Ed - Harrassment
Publish at Scribd or explore others:
GHS Parent - If your school does not investigate the harassment or if they do not take steps to stop the harassment, it may be they are not taking your complaint seriously and you need to seek outside help. I would contact the Department of Education for advice. Your school has a legal obligation to investigate the harassment. No student deserves to be harassed and law will be on your side.
ReplyDeleteStart calling outside of your county they will not care who these folks are or where they came from. They will guide you in the right direction to force your director to do his job. I would also call the media they would love to have a story like this to splash all over the airwaves. You can start with the local news but I would also call the big news media. This will cause those that are there to protect your students to pull their head out of the sand.
Department of Education Tennessee
615-741-2731
Department of Education US
Family Policy Compliance Office (FPCO)
202-260-3887
Office of Civil Rights
800-421-3481
rumor has it
ReplyDeleteLewis and old board members have been bragging about how they made these parents back down ??
because they knew they couldn't win against Lewis??
Surely these parents are using other options, if not we will just continue to see more of Lewis and Fox bullying teachers, parents and students. Because they believe they are untouchable.
Anonymous these parents have not stopped this fight. They know all the options and are following all of them. They were not able to get anywhere with Lewis or Fox on following polices but I have heard they are not done. So whoever is saying the BOE got away with not addressing these parents concerns is WRONG!
ReplyDeleteWe all know the time has passed on having the teacher arrested for assault but I would hope that Medley covered himself and made sure this was in her record. After all this was handled on the school level right? I am sure her and her assistant’s files are going to be public knowledge real soon. Since both of these women work for the school district they are mandated to report these things I do believe. As for the board I would also hope they help this family and force Lewis and Fox to do their jobs. I don’t think you can write and pass a policy then not follow it without answering to someone. SC might be Lewis & Friends Country but I am sure that the state, federal or news media would love to know how they are running our public schools.
It is time our leaders start answering for the decisions they are making. We as a community need to let these two women, Lewis, Fox and Medley know they are not untouchable and like the students of our schools there are consequences for your actions. Ghsparent keep up the fight and blow the lid high.
If the School Board is responsible for informing the Superintendent of Schools when polices are not being followed and they in turn notify the principal to correct the problem then it sounds to me like this is just a big vicious circle with no end.
ReplyDeleteWho is responsible for investigating Mr. Lewis, Mrs. Fox and the school system if the rules or policies are not being followed? There has to be someone they have to answer to. It is not the public because he is not an elected official. Would he answer to the board and would they be responsible for making sure he is doing the job they appointed him to do? There are so many cases just like this one where they are not following policies or rules it would shock the public. So who is responsible? Who is watching the BOE? How do we stop the vicious circles families have to go through to get answers?
Does anyone feel maybe Queen Mom was lying about all this since the teacher is still teaching, the principal is still in charge and no lawsuit has been filed. She accused alot of people with no merit and now her and the princess need to move on. Someone stated that the princess wasnt trying out again I bet this coach is saying YAY. Now she wont have to deal with Queen Mom for another year. It is over people move on these parents lost.
ReplyDeleteBased on the federal section of the Smith County Website the 7-12 code of conduct section if this was turned around this student would have been in violation of the following rules:
ReplyDeleteCATEGORY II-10 Offenses
Offenses that may result in suspension or alternative school placement. Any student suspended or placed in alternative school will not be allowed to participate in any school function including field trips, athletic practices or contests, etc.
1st time Category II Offense—3 days suspension or alternative school or
corporal punishment
2nd time Category II Offense—5 days suspension or alternative school
3rd time Category II Offense—10 days suspension or alternative school
4th time Category II Offense—referral to Student Disciplinary Authority
1. Use of foul or abusive language
2. Disrespect to teacher/staff/peer
3. Harassment (verbal or physical)
4. Assault (verbal or physical)
5. Insubordination (not following the directive from a teacher, administrator, or other school system employee)
6. Dishonesty (copying, cheating, forging signatures, lying)
7. Extortion
8. Sexual misconduct
9. Participation in a school disruption
10. Bullying, threatening, hazing, or intimidating behavior
CATEGORY III – 3 Offenses
These offenses are subject to suspension up to a maximum of 20 days.
1. Sexual harassment as defined by Board Policy
2. Repeated violation of school rules
3. Verbal assault on a school employee
Category VI – 1 Offense
There will be zero tolerance for the following offenses. These offenses will be reported to the superintendent and to law enforcement officials.
1. Battery on a school employee
Do any us really believe if this child had broken all of the above rules she would still be in school? Why is it any different for the teacher? Please explain this to me and the rest of the parents, students and residents of our county.
ghsfan said... QUOTE
ReplyDelete"Does anyone feel maybe Queen Mom was lying about all this since the teacher is still teaching, the principal is still in charge and no lawsuit has been filed. She accused alot of people with no merit and now her and the princess need to move on. Someone stated that the princess wasnt trying out again I bet this coach is saying YAY. Now she wont have to deal with Queen Mom for another year. It is over people move on these parents lost."
AHHHHH! A New Year.... Same old ghsfan.
Anonymous if that is what these parents are going by for rules or polices then GHS or the BOE has not failed to follow them in this case. Those rules only apply to the students of Smith County not teachers, principals, administration or the superintendent. I agree that this teacher should have to answer for the allegations this family has presented to GHS and the BOE but the parents putting it on the internet is only making the situation worse. I agree with several of the other folks that by dragging everyone in the mud these parents are making it harder for their child at school. How many teachers have either distanced themselves or walk on eggshells in this child presence. They have to be worried that they could be next every time this parent doesn’t get their way. There are ways these situations are handled within the system, going public on the internet is not one of them.
ReplyDeleteI really should be doing something else, but reading and posting humors me to no end.
ReplyDelete4theteacher~ said QUOTE "Anonymous if that is what these parents are going by for rules or polices then GHS or the BOE has not failed to follow them in this case. Those rules only apply to the students of Smith County not teachers, principals, administration or the superintendent."
~I don't think that Anonymous (for lack of a more creative and discernible name) is saying those are the policies that the admin. are to follow, but rather, that the student in this situation has not broken any of these rules.
QUOTE~"I agree that this teacher should have to answer for the allegations this family has presented to GHS and the BOE but the parents putting it on the internet is only making the situation worse."
~You must be late jumping in here, this blog is long past whether or not this teacher should answer. This parent now seems to be finding a way to handle their situation as well as provide pertinent info out for the rest of the concerned parents in Smith County.
QUOTE~ "I agree with several of the other folks that by dragging everyone in the mud these parents are making it harder for their child at school."
~"dragging everyone in the mud", seriously.
QUOTE~ "How many teachers have either distanced themselves or walk on eggshells in this child presence. They have to be worried that they could be next every time this parent doesn’t get their way."
~Why don't you tell us how many teachers have distanced themselves from this student. I would love to hear how many other teachers can't handle their job. But that isn't what you are saying, is it?
Quote~ "There are ways these situations are handled within the system, going public on the internet is not one of them."
~Obviously situations are not handled within the system or we wouldn't be having this little debate. As for "going public" I really feel strongly about our right to go public with any situation. Especially with a "public" system.
Anyway, 4theteacher~ Nothing personal just somethings to think about.
Jitterbug what if anything is this doing besides allowing these parents a forum to ruin peoples good name. Do you realy feel that this blog will make any changes within our system? We should be spending our time helping our leaders continue with the improvment in our school system for the education of our children. Do your really think that a cheerleader quitting a squad then blaming the school is going to do anything but waste everyones time. I think I will get my information from the BOE not an angry parent using the internet in such a negative way.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your thoughts. I hope you are more successful in getting information from the BOE than other posters have been in the past.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, this blog probably will not make a change in the system, but in my opinion, more importantly it will make a change with the parents. No parent should put their children in a system and assume things are running appropriately because they are told so. All parents have the responsibility to and should be considering situations like this one with an open mind and with the idea that "this could happen to me or my child" and "if so, how would my family handle it or how would we be treated?"
Saying the blog "ruins peoples good name" is a harsh accusation considering it would be the same as accusing the family of slander/libel, which in effect would be doing the same thing to this family as you are accusing.
In this day and time, I personally consider blogs like this one to be comparable to the endangered "letter to the editor".
SC Parent - Found this on the TN State Board of Education - Who do I call with a concern about something that happened at my child's school?
ReplyDeleteBecause the day to day operation of schools is governed by local boards of education, most concerns can only be addressed by the local school district and school. Therefore, concerns should first be shared with the school. Local school districts usually have staff assigned to each particular area of school operations who can also provide assistance.
Depending on state law and local board policy, some decisions of principals may be appealed to the director of schools (for example, suspension decisions from a due process hearing) or to the local board of education (for example, student assignment to a school). However, neither the State Department of Education nor the State Board of Education has authority to overturn the decisions of local boards of education. Local boards of education supervise the director of schools. Members of local boards of education are elected by the voters in their district.
Note: Local boards supervise the director of schools. Now we know the chain of command.
Also look at the School Safety for TN
Link: http://www.state.tn.us/sbe/Policies/2.300%20School%20Safety%20Policy.pdf
Jitterbug AMEN! I read on here where the parents stated they were not involved except for what was happening at GHS because they never had any trouble. Everyone needs to understand that this could happen to you and does happen to families everyday in our community.
ReplyDeleteAs far as not changing anything it appears there have been 2788 different people that have read this blog. The more information that is shared by all will only benefit every one.
kidsfirst said... QUOTE "The more information that is shared by all will only benefit every one."
ReplyDeleteExactly.
I don't have a problem with those who read and/or post that disagree with what is happening in this situation, or with what I or others have to say about it. That is totally their right. I do, however, have problem with parents who just leave their kids alone with hundreds of other people a day and just "hope for the best" and never question anything. I also hope that those in disagreement can come to see that this blog can be a good thing in this community.
Without going all the way back through the most recent post, from what I can recall, the topics from the posting majority have been directly about change and policy and not about the situation that started it all. That is, with the exception of those in disagreement. It now appears that they are the ones who can't "let it go".
If any change is going to take place it will take a concerted effort from all sides and an ability to (pardon the cliche) "agree to disagree".