Text of MA H 3909 (2014)

HOUSE . . . . . . . No. 3909 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ______________________________________ HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, February 24, 2014. The committee on Ways and Means, to whom was referred the Bill relative to bullying in schools (House, No. 3721), reports recommending that the same ought to pass with an amendment substituting therefor the accompanying bill (House, No. 3909). For the committee, BRIAN S. DEMPSEY. FILED ON: 2/24/2014 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3909 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts _______________ In the Year Two Thousand Fourteen _______________ An Act relative to bullying in schools. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1 SECTION 1. Subsection (d) of section 37O of chapter 71 of the General Laws, as 2 appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word 3 “retaliation”, in line 89, the following:- , including procedures for collecting, maintaining and 4 reporting bullying incident data required under subsection (k). 5 SECTION 2. Said section 37O of said chapter 71, as so appearing, is hereby amended by 6 striking out subsection (d) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:- 7 (d)(1) Each school district, charter school, non-public school, approved private day or 8 residential school and collaborative school shall develop, adhere to and update a plan to address 9 bullying prevention and intervention in consultation with teachers, school staff, professional 10 support personnel, school volunteers, administrators, community representatives, local law 11 enforcement agencies, students, parents and guardians. The plan shall apply to students and 12 members of a school staff, including, but not limited to, educators, administrators, school nurses, 13 cafeteria workers, custodians, bus drivers, athletic coaches, advisors to an extracurricular activity 14 and paraprofessionals. The consultation shall include, but not be limited to, notice and a public 15 comment period; provided, however, that a non-public school shall only be required to give 16 notice to and provide a comment period for families that have a child attending the school. The 17 plan shall be updated at least biennially. 18 (2) Each plan shall include, but not be limited to: (i) descriptions of and statements 19 prohibiting bullying, cyber-bullying and retaliation; (ii) clear procedures for students, staff, 20 parents, guardians and others to report bullying or retaliation; (iii) a provision that reports of 21 bullying or retaliation may be made anonymously; provided, however, that no disciplinary action 22 shall be taken against a student solely on the basis of an anonymous report; (iv) clear procedures 23 for promptly responding to and investigating reports of bullying or retaliation; (v) the range of 24 disciplinary actions that may be taken against a perpetrator for bullying or retaliation; provided, 25 however, that the disciplinary actions shall balance the need for accountability with the need to 26 teach appropriate behavior; (vi) clear procedures for restoring a sense of safety for a victim and 27 assessing that victim's needs for protection; (vii) strategies for protecting from bullying or 28 retaliation a person who reports bullying, provides information during an investigation of 29 bullying or witnesses or has reliable information about an act of bullying; (viii) procedures 30 consistent with state and federal law for promptly notifying the parents or guardians of a victim 31 and a perpetrator; provided, further, that the parents or guardians of a victim shall also be 32 notified of the action taken to prevent any further acts of bullying or retaliation; and provided, 33 further, that the procedures shall provide for immediate notification pursuant to regulations 34 promulgated under this subsection by the principal or person who holds a comparable role to the 35 local law enforcement agency when criminal charges may be pursued against the perpetrator; 36 (ix) a provision that a student who knowingly makes a false accusation of bullying or retaliation 37 shall be subject to disciplinary action; and (x) a strategy for providing counseling or referral to 38 appropriate services for perpetrators and victims and for appropriate family members of said 39 students. The plan shall afford all students the same protection regardless of their status under 40 the law. 41 (3) Each plan shall recognize that certain students may be more vulnerable to become 42 targets of bullying, harassment, or teasing based on actual or perceived differentiating 43 characteristics, including race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, sex, socioeconomic 44 status, homelessness, academic status, gender identity or expression, physical appearance, 45 pregnant or parenting status, sexual orientation, or mental, physical, developmental, or sensory 46 disability, or by association with a person who has or is perceived to have one or more of these 47 characteristics. The plan shall include the specific steps that each school district, charter school, 48 non-public school, approved private day or residential school and collaborative school shall take 49 to support vulnerable students and provide all students with the skills, knowledge, and strategies 50 to prevent or respond to bullying, harassment, or teasing. A school district, charter school, non- 51 public school, approved private day or residential school or collaborative school may establish 52 separate discrimination or harassment policies that include additional categories of students. 53 Nothing in this section shall alter the obligations of a school district, charter school, non-public 54 school, approved private day or residential school or collaborative school to remediate any 55 discrimination or harassment based on a person's membership in a legally protected category 56 under local, state or federal law. 57 (4) The plan for a school district, charter school, approved private day or residential 58 school and collaborative school shall include a provision for ongoing professional development 59 to build the skills of all staff members, including, but not limited to, educators, administrators, 60 school nurses, cafeteria workers, custodians, bus drivers, athletic coaches, advisors to 61 extracurricular activities and paraprofessionals, to prevent, identify and respond to bullying. The 62 content of such professional development shall include, but not be limited to: (i) developmentally 63 appropriate strategies to prevent bullying incidents; (ii) developmentally appropriate strategies 64 for immediate, effective interventions to stop bullying incidents; (iii) information regarding the 65 complex interaction and power differential that can take place between and among a perpetrator, 66 victim and witnesses to the bullying; (iv) research findings on bullying, including information 67 about specific categories of students who have been shown to be particularly at risk for bullying 68 in the school environment; (v) information on the incidence and nature of cyber-bullying; and 69 (vi) internet safety issues as they relate to cyber-bullying. The department shall identify and offer 70 information on alternative methods for fulfilling the professional development requirements of 71 this section, at least 1 of which shall be available at no cost to school districts, charter schools, 72 approved private day or residential schools and collaborative schools. 73 (5) The plan shall include provisions for informing parents and guardians about the 74 bullying prevention curriculum of the school district or school and shall include, but not be 75 limited to: (i) how parents and guardians can reinforce the curriculum at home and support the 76 school district or school plan; (ii) the dynamics of bullying; and (iii) online safety and cyber- 77 bullying. 78 (6) The department shall promulgate rules and regulations on the requirements related to 79 a principal's duties under clause (viii) of the second paragraph of this subsection; provided, that 80 school districts, charter schools, approved private day or residential schools and collaborative 81 schools shall be subject to the regulations. A non-public school shall develop procedures for 82 immediate notification by the principal or person who holds a comparable role to the local law 83 enforcement agency when criminal charges may be pursued against the perpetrator. 84 SECTION 3. Subsection (g) of said section 37O of said chapter 71, as so appearing, is 85 hereby amended by inserting after the word “retaliation”, in line 192, the following:- ; and (v) 86 inform the parents or guardians of the victim about the department’s problem resolution system 87 and the process for seeking assistance or filing a claim through the problem resolution system. 88 SECTION 4. Said section 37O of said chapter 71, as so appearing, is hereby further 89 amended by inserting after subsection (j) the following subsections:- 90 (k) Each school district, charter school, approved private day or residential school and 91 collaborative school shall annually report bullying incident data to the department. The data shall 92 include, but not be limited to: (i) the number of reported allegations of bullying or retaliation; (ii) 93 the number and nature of substantiated incidents of bullying or retaliation; (iii) the number of 94 students disciplined for engaging in bullying or retaliation; and (iv) any other information as may 95 be required by the department. Bullying incident data shall be annually reported to the 96 department in a form and manner prescribed by the department, in consultation with the attorney 97 general, provided that the department may use existing data collection and reporting mechanisms 98 to collect such information from school districts. The department shall analyze the bullying 99 incident data and shall publish an annual report containing aggregate, statewide information on 100 the frequency and nature of bullying in schools. The department shall file such annual report 101 with the attorney general and with the clerks of the senate and the house of representatives who 102 shall forward the same to the chairs of the joint committee on education, the chairs of the joint 103 committee on the judiciary, and the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and 104 means. 105 (l) The department shall develop a student survey to assess school climate and the 106 prevalence, nature and severity of bullying in schools. The student survey shall also assist in 107 assessing the effectiveness of bullying prevention curricula and instruction developed and 108 administered under subsection (c) of section 37O of chapter 71. The survey shall be administered 109 by each school district, charter school, approved private day or residential school and 110 collaborative school at least once every three years. The survey shall be designed to protect 111 student privacy and allow for anonymous participation by students. 112 The completed surveys shall be collected by the school official identified in the plan as 113 responsible for receiving reports of bullying or retaliation, who shall review the student surveys 114 in order to identify patterns of bullying and retaliation and to evaluate the effectiveness of the 115 school’s bullying prevention and intervention efforts. All completed surveys shall be forwarded 116 to the department. The department shall collect and analyze the student survey data in order to 117 compare the survey results with the bullying incident data reported under subsection (k), identify 118 long-term trends and areas of improvement, and monitor bullying prevention efforts in schools 119 over time. 120 SECTION 5. The department of elementary and secondary education shall develop the 121 student survey required under section 4 of this act within 12 months of the effective date of this 122 act.