HARASSMENT BY EMPLOYEES
Harassment of employees, students, volunteers or visitors will not be tolerated in the school district. School district includes school district facilities, school district property, or property within the jurisdiction of the school district; while on school-owned or schooloperated transportation; while attending or engaged in school activities; and whileaway from school grounds if the misconduct directly affects the good order, efficient management and welfare of the district.
Harassment includes, but is not limited to, race, religion, national or ethnic origin, color, marital status, disability, sex, veteran status, age, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition, or other prohibited status. Harassment by board members, administrators, employees, parents, vendors, and others doing business with the school district is prohibited. Employees whose behavior is alleged to be in violation of this policy will be subject to the investigation procedure which may result in discipline, up to and including, discharge or other appropriate action. Other individuals whose behavior is alleged to be in violation of this policy will be subject to appropriate sanctions as determined and imposed by the superintendent or board.
Harassment on the basis of race, religion, national or ethnic origin, color, marital status, disability, sex, veteran status, age, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition, or other prohibited status means conduct of a verbal or physical nature that is designed to embarrass, distress, agitate, disturb or trouble individuals when:
submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of student’s education, or of an individual's participation in school programs or activities or employment;
submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for decisions affecting the individual; or
such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's performance, or;
creating an intimidating, hostile, oroffensive working or learning environment.
Harassment as set out above, may include, but is not limited to the following:
verbal or written harassment or abuse, or unwelcome communication implying sexual motives or intentions;
repeated remarks of a demeaning nature;
implied or explicit threats concerning one's grades, achievements, etc.;
demeaning jokes, stories, or activities directed at an individual;
pressure for sexual activity; repeated remarks to a person with sexual or demeaning implications;
unwelcome touching;
unwelcome and offensive public sexual display of affection;
suggesting or demanding sexual involvement, accompanied by implied or explicit threats concerning one's job, promotions, recommendations, etc.
Employees, students, volunteers or visitors who believe they have suffered harassment shall report such matters to the Compliance Coordinator or building principal.
Every report of alleged violations of this policy that can be interpreted at the outset to fall within the protections of laws against discrimination shall be handled as a joint, concurrent investigation into all allegations and coordinated with the full participation of the Compliance Officer and Title IX Coordinator. If, in the course of an ongoing investigation of this policy, potential issues of sexual harassment or discrimination are identified, the Title IX Coordinator shall be promptly notified, and the investigation shall be conducted jointly and concurrently to address the issues of alleged sexual harassment or discrimination as well as the incidents of alleged violations of this policy.
Upon receiving a complaint, the investigator shall confer with the complainant to obtain an understanding and a statement of the facts. It shall be the responsibility of the investigator to promptly and reasonably investigate claims of harassment and to pass the findings on to the superintendent who shall complete such further investigation as deemed necessary and take such final action as appropriate. It is the intention of the district to complete its investigation within ten (10) working days after receiving a complaint unless extenuating circumstances such as unavailability of a witness or needing additional time because of the complexity of the investigation or the need to involve outside experts. The extended timeframe for investigation due to extenuating circumstances shall not exceed ten (10) days without the consent of the complainant, unless the alleged victim agrees to a longer time limit. Information regarding an investigation of harassment shall be confidential to the extent possible, and those individuals who are involved in the investigation shall not discuss information regarding the complaint outside the investigation process.
No one shall retaliate against an employee or student because they have filed a harassment complaint, assisted or participated in a harassment investigation, proceeding, or hearing regarding a harassment charge or because they have opposed language or conduct that violates this policy. This policy should be used when an employee is the alleged harasser or the alleged victim. It is strongly recommended the investigator and alternate investigator be of opposite sexes.
It shall also be the responsibility of the superintendent, in conjunction with the investigator and principals, to develop administrative rules regarding this policy. The superintendent or superintendent's designee shall also be responsible for organizing training programs to educate employees, students and others involved with the school district about harassment and the school district's policy prohibiting harassment. The training shall include how to recognize harassment and what to do in case an individual is harassed. The employee training will be documented in personnel files to ensure a recordof training for each employee.
Legal Reference:
42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq. (1994).
29 C.F.R. Pt. 1604.11 (1996). File: 404.06 Page 3 of 3
Cross Reference:
103 Equal Educational Opportunity
402.01 Equal Opportunity Employment
402.05 Employee Grievances
403.03 Abuse of Students by School District Employees
405 Employee Conduct and Appearance
504.18 Harassment By Students
505 Student Discipline
