Policy 5145.7 - Sex Discrimination & Sex-Based Harassment
Series: 5000 - Students
Policy: 5145.7 - Sex Discrimination & Sex-Based Harassment
Adopted: 02/16/2010
Last Revised: 03/02/2021
Last Reviewed: 03/02/2021
Download Policy 5145.7 - Sex Discrimination & Sex-Based Harassment PDF (English)
Download Rule 5145.7 - Sex Discrimination & Sex-Based Harassment PDF (English)
Sexual Harassment
The Board of Education is committed to maintaining a safe school environment that is free from harassment and discrimination. The Board prohibits at school or at schoolsponsored or school-related activities, sexual harassment targeted at any student by anyone. The Board also prohibits retaliatory behavior or action against any person who reports, files a complaint or testifies about, or otherwise supports a complainant in alleging sexual harassment.
The District strongly encourages students who feel that they are being or have been sexually harassed on school grounds or at a school-sponsored or school-related activity by another student or an adult, or who have experienced off-campus sexual harassment that has a continuing effect on campus, to immediately contact their teacher, the principal, the District's Title IX Coordinator, or any other available school employee. Any employee who receives a report or observes an incident of sexual harassment shall notify the Title IX Coordinator.
Once notified, the Title IX Coordinator shall ensure the complaint is addressed through Title IX complaint procedures or uniform complaint procedures, as applicable, and shall offer supportive measures to the complainant.
The superintendent or designee shall inform students and parents/guardians of the District's sexual harassment policy by disseminating it through parent/guardian notifications, publishing it on the District's web site, and including it in student and staff handbooks. All District staff shall be trained regarding the policy.
Instruction/Information
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that all District students receive ageappropriate instruction and information on sexual harassment. Such instruction and information shall include:
- What acts and behavior constitute sexual harassment, including the fact that sexual harassment could occur between people of the same sex and could involve sexual violence
- A clear message that students do not have to endure sexual harassment under any circumstance
- Encouragement to report observed instances of sexual harassment, even where the victim of the harassment has not complained
- A clear message that student safety is the District’s primary concern, and that any separate rule violation involving an alleged victim or any other person reporting a sexual harassment incident will be addressed separately and will not affect the manner in which the sexual harassment complaint will be received, investigated, or resolved
- A clear message that, regardless of a complainant’s noncompliance with the writing, timeline, or other formal filing requirements, every sexual harassment allegation that involves a student, whether as the complainant, respondent, or victim of the harassment, shall be investigated and prompt action shall be taken to respond to harassment, prevent recurrence, and address any continuing effect on students
- Information about the District’s procedure for investigating complaints and the person(s) to whom a report of sexual harassment should be made
- Information about the rights of students and parents/guardians to file a civil or criminal complaint, as applicable, including the right to file a civil or criminal complaint while the District investigation of a sexual harassment complaint continues
- A clear message that, when needed, the District will implement supportive measures to ensure a safe school environment for a student who is the complainant or victim of sexual harassment and/or other students during an investigation.
Disciplinary Actions
Upon completion of an investigation of a sexual harassment complaint, any student found to have engaged in sexual harassment or sexual violence in violation of this policy shall be subject to disciplinary action. For students in grades 4-12, disciplinary action may include suspension and/or expulsion, provided that, in imposing such discipline, the entire circumstances of the incident(s) shall be taken into account. Upon investigation of a sexual harassment complaint, any employee found to have engaged in sexual harassment or sexual violence toward any student shall be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, in accordance with law and the applicable collective bargaining agreement.
Record Keeping
In accordance with law, the Superintendent or designee shall maintain a record of all reported cases of sexual harassment to enable the District to monitor, address, and prevent repetitive harassing behavior in District schools.
Rule 5145.7
Adopted: 06/02/1998
Last Revised: 10/01/2024
Last Reviewed: 10/01/2024
The district does not discriminate on the basis of sex in any of its programs or activities and complies with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and its implementing regulations. Sex discrimination, including sex-based harassment, is prohibited in district education programs and activities.
Definitions
Sex discrimination includes treating a student differently with respect to the provision of opportunities to participate in school programs or activities or the provision or receipt of educational benefits or services based on the student's sex, sex stereotypes; sex characteristics; sexual orientation; gender; gender identity; gender expression; pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation, including related medical conditions and recovery; parental, family, or marital status; or the student's association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics.
Sex discrimination, including sex-based harassment, intimidation, or bullying, may result from physical, verbal, nonverbal, or written conduct and occurs when prohibited conduct is so severe, persistent, or pervasive that it affects a student's ability to participate in or benefit from an educational program or activity; creates an intimidating, threatening, hostile, or offensive educational environment; has the effect of substantially or unreasonably interfering with a student's academic performance; or otherwise adversely affects a student's educational opportunities.
Sex-based harassment is a form of sex discrimination and means sexual harassment and other harassment on the basis of sex, sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, or other bases specified above. Conduct will constitute sex-based harassment when it takes the form of:
1. Quid pro quo harassment: A district employee, agent, or other individual authorized by the district to provide an aid, benefit, or service in the district's education program or activity conditioning the provision of district aid, benefit, or service on a student's participation in unwelcome sexual conduct
2. Hostile environment harassment: Unwelcome sex-based conduct that, based on the totality of the circumstances, is subjectively and objectively offensive and is so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person's ability to participate in or benefit from the district's education program or activity
Any prohibited conduct that occurs off campus or outside of school-related or school-sponsored programs or activities will be regarded as sex-based harassment in violation of district policy if it has a continuing effect on a student's ability to participate in or benefit from district educational programs or activities.
3. Sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, or stalking as defined in 34 CFR 106.2
Sexual harassment includes, but is not limited to, unwelcome sexual advances, unwanted requests for sexual favors, or other unwanted verbal, visual, or physical conduct of a sexual nature made against another person of the same or opposite sex in the educational setting, under any of the following conditions:
1. Submission to the conduct is explicitly or implicitly made a term or condition of a student's academic status or progress
2. Submission to or rejection of the conduct by a student is used as the basis for academic decisions affecting the student
3. The conduct has the purpose or effect of having a negative impact on the student's academic performance or of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive educational environment
4. Submission to or rejection of the conduct by the student is used as the basis for any decision affecting the student regarding benefits and services, honors, programs, or activities available at or through any district program or activity
Examples of Sex Discrimination and Sex-Based Harassment
Examples of types of conduct which are prohibited in the district and which may constitute sex-based harassment, under state and/or federal law, in accordance with the definitions above, include, but are not limited to:
1. Unwelcome leering, sexual flirtations, or propositions
2. Unwelcome sex-based slurs, epithets, threats, verbal abuse, derogatory comments, or sexually degrading descriptions
3. Graphic verbal comments about an individual's body or overly personal conversation
4. Sex-based jokes, derogatory posters, notes, stories, cartoons, drawings, pictures, obscene gestures, or computer-generated images of a sexual nature
5. Spreading sex-based rumors
6. Teasing or sexual remarks about students enrolled in a predominantly single-sex class
7. Massaging, grabbing, fondling, stroking, or brushing the body
8. Touching an individual's body or clothes in a sexual way
9. Impeding or blocking movements or any physical interference with school activities when directed at an individual on the basis of sex
10. Displaying sexually suggestive objects
11. Sexual assault, sexual battery, or sexual coercion
12. Electronic communications containing comments, words, or images described above
Title IX Coordinator/Compliance Officer
The district designates the following individual as the responsible employee to coordinate its efforts to comply with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as well as to investigate and resolve sexual harassment complaints under Board Rule 1312.3 Uniform Complaint Procedures. The Title IX coordinator may be contacted at:
Compliance Coordinator, Positive School Climate
1305 E. Vine St., Lodi, CA 95240
(209) 331-7976 or (209) 331-2245
compliance@lodiusd.net
Notifications
To prevent unlawful sex discrimination and sex-based harassment in district programs and activities, the Superintendent or designee shall provide notifications and implement measures to prevent discrimination and harassment as specified in Board Rule 5145.3 Nondiscrimination/Harassment.
In addition to the measures to prevent discrimination specified in Board Rule 5145.3 -Nondiscrimination/Harassment, the Superintendent or designee shall ensure that a copy of the district's sex discrimination and sex-based harassment policy and regulation:
1. Is displayed in a prominent location in the main administrative building or other area where notices of district rules, regulations, procedures, and standards of conduct are posted
2. Is summarized on a poster, which shall be prominently and conspicuously displayed in each bathroom and locker room at each school
The poster may be displayed in public areas that are accessible to and frequented by students, including, but not limited to, classrooms, hallways, gymnasiums, auditoriums, and cafeterias. The poster shall display the rules and procedures for reporting a charge of sexual harassment; the name, phone number, and email address of an appropriate school employee to contact to report sexual harassment; the rights of the reporting student, the complainant, and the respondent; and the responsibilities of the school.
3. Is provided as part of any orientation program conducted for new and continuing students at the time the student is enrolled or at the beginning of each quarter, semester, or summer session
4. Appears in any school or district publication that sets forth the school's or district's comprehensive rules, regulations, procedures, and standards of conduct
Reports and Complaints
A student or a student's parent(s)/guardian(s) who believes that the student has been subjected to sex discrimination, including sex-based harassment, in a district program or activity or who has witnessed sex discrimination, including sex-based harassment, is strongly encouraged to report the incident to the district's Title IX coordinator, a teacher, the principal, or any other available school employee. Within one workday of receiving such a report, the principal or other school employee shall forward the report to the district's Title IX coordinator. Any school employee who observes sex discrimination or sex-based harassment shall, within one workday, report the observation to the Title IX coordinator as specified in the accompanying Board policy. The report shall be made regardless of whether the alleged victim files a formal complaint or requests confidentiality.
When a report or complaint of sex discrimination or sex-based harassment involves off-campus conduct, the Title IX coordinator shall assess whether the conduct may create or contribute to the creation of a hostile school environment. If the Title IX coordinator determines that a hostile environment may be created, the complaint shall be investigated and resolved in the same manner as if the prohibited conduct occurred at school.
Complaint Procedures
All complaints and allegations of sex discrimination and sex-based harassment shall be investigated and resolved in accordance with 34 CFR 106.44 and 106.45 and Board Rule 5145.71 - Title IX Sex Discrimination and Sex-Based Harassment Complaint Procedures.
Issues Unique to Intersex, Nonbinary, Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Students
Gender identity of a student means the student's gender-related identity, appearance, or behavior as determined from the student's internal sense, regardless of whether that gender-related identity, appearance, or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with the student's physiology or assigned sex at birth.
Gender expression means a student's gender-related appearance and behavior, whether stereotypically associated with the student's assigned sex at birth.
Gender transition refers to the process in which a student changes from living and identifying as the sex assigned to the student at birth to living and identifying as the sex that corresponds to the student's gender identity.
Gender-nonconforming student means a student whose gender expression differs from stereotypical expectations.
Intersex student means a student with natural bodily variations in anatomy, hormones, chromosomes, and other traits that differ from expectations generally associated with female and male bodies.
Nonbinary student means a student whose gender identity falls outside of the traditional conception of strictly either female or male, regardless of whether the student identifies as transgender, was born with intersex traits, uses gender-neutral pronouns, or uses agender, genderqueer, pangender, gender nonconforming, gender variant, or such other more specific term to describe their gender.
Transgender student means a student whose gender identity is different from the gender assigned at birth.
The district prohibits acts of verbal, nonverbal, or physical aggression, intimidation, or hostility that are based on sex, sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, or that have the purpose or effect of producing a negative impact on the student's academic performance or of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive educational environment, regardless of whether the acts are sexual in nature. Examples of the types of conduct that are prohibited in the district and which may constitute sex-based hostile environment harassment include, but are not limited to:
1. Refusing to address a student by a name and the pronouns consistent with the student's gender identity
2. Disciplining or disparaging a student or excluding the student from participating in activities, for behavior or appearance that is consistent with the student's gender identity or that does not conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity, as applicable
3. Blocking a student's entry to the restroom that corresponds to the student's gender identity
4. Taunting a student because the student participates in an athletic activity more typically favored by a student of the other sex
5. Revealing a student's gender identity to individuals who do not have a legitimate need for the information, without the student's consent
6. Using gender-specific slurs
7. Assaulting a student because of the student's gender, sex characteristic, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression
To ensure that intersex, nonbinary, transgender, and gender-nonconforming students are afforded the same rights, benefits, and protections provided to all students by law and Board policy, the district shall address each situation on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with the following guidelines:
1. Right to privacy: A student's intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming status is the student's private information
The district shall develop strategies to prevent unauthorized disclosure of students' private information. Such strategies may include, but are not limited to, collecting or maintaining information about student gender only when relevant to the educational program or activity, protecting or revealing a student's gender identity as necessary to protect the health or safety of the student, and keeping a student's unofficial record separate from the official record.
The district shall only disclose the information to others with the student's prior written consent, except when the disclosure is otherwise required by law or when the district has compelling evidence that disclosure is necessary to preserve the student's physical or mental well-being.
The district shall only allow disclosure of a student's personally identifiable information to employees in accordance with law. Any district employee to whom a student's intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming status is disclosed shall keep the student's information confidential. When disclosure of a student's gender identity is made to a district employee by a student, the employee shall seek the student's permission to notify the Title IX compliance officer. If the student refuses to give permission, the employee shall keep the student's information confidential, unless the employee is required to disclose or report the student's information pursuant to this administrative regulation, and shall inform the student that honoring the student's request may limit the district's ability to meet the student's needs related to the student's status as an intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming student. If the student permits the employee to notify the Title IX compliance officer, the employee shall do so within three school days.
As appropriate given the student's need for support, the Title IX compliance officer may discuss with the student any need to disclose the student's intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconformity status or gender identity or gender expression to the student's parents/guardians and/or others, including other students, teacher(s), or other adults on campus. The district shall offer support services, such as counseling, to students who wish to inform their parents/guardians of their status and request assistance in doing so.
2. Determining a Student's Gender Identity: The Title IX compliance officer shall accept the student's assertion of gender identity and begin to treat the student consistent with that gender identity unless district personnel present a credible and supportable basis for believing that the student's assertion is for an improper purpose
3. Addressing a Student's Transition Needs: The Title IX compliance officer shall arrange a meeting with the student and, if appropriate, the student's parents/guardians to identify and develop strategies for ensuring that the student's access to educational programs and activities is maintained
The meeting shall discuss the intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming student's rights and how those rights may affect and be affected by the rights of other students and shall address specific subjects related to the student's access to facilities and to academic or educational support programs, services, or activities, including, but not limited to, sports and other competitive endeavors. In addition, the compliance officer shall identify specific school site employee(s) to whom the student may report any problem related to the student's status as an intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming individual, so that prompt action can be taken to address it. Alternatively, if appropriate and desired by the student, the school may form a support team for the student that will meet periodically to assess whether the arrangements for the student are meeting the student's educational needs and providing equal access to programs and activities, educate appropriate staff about the student's transition, and serve as a resource to the student to better protect the student from gender-based discrimination.
4. Accessibility to Sex-Segregated Facilities, Programs, and Activities: When the district maintains sex-segregated facilities, such as restrooms and locker rooms, or offers sex-segregated programs and activities, such as physical education classes, intermural sports, and interscholastic athletic programs, students shall be permitted to access facilities and participate in programs and activities consistent with their gender identity
To address any student's privacy concerns in using sex-segregated facilities, the district shall offer available options such as a gender-neutral or single-use restroom or changing area, a bathroom stall with a door, an area in the locker room separated by a curtain or screen, or use of the locker room before or after the other students. However, the district shall not require a student to utilize these options because the student is intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming. In addition, a student shall be permitted to participate in accordance with the student's gender identity in other circumstances where students are separated by gender, such as for class discussions, yearbook pictures, and field trips. A student's right to participate in a sex-segregated activity in accordance with the student's gender identity shall not render invalid or inapplicable any other eligibility rule established for participation in the activity.
Beginning July 1, 2026, each school shall provide and maintain at least one all-gender restroom for student use that meets the requirements of Education Code 35292.5.
5. Student Records: Upon each student's enrollment, the district is required to maintain a mandatory permanent student record (official record) that includes the student's gender and legal name
A student's legal name as entered on the mandatory student record required pursuant to 5 CCR 432 shall only be changed with proper documentation. A student's gender as entered on the student's official record required pursuant to 5 CCR 432 shall only be changed with written authorization of a parent/guardian having legal custody of the student.
However, when proper documentation or authorization, as applicable, is not submitted with a request to change a student's legal name or gender, any change to the student's record shall be limited to the student's unofficial records such as attendance sheets, report cards, and school identification.
6. Names and Pronouns: If a student so chooses, district personnel shall be required to address the student by a name and the pronoun(s) consistent with the student's gender identity, without the necessity of a court order or a change to the student's official district record
However, inadvertent slips or honest mistakes by district personnel in the use of the student's name and/or consistent pronouns will, in general, not constitute a violation of this Board Rule or the accompanying board policy.
7. Uniforms/Dress Code: A student has the right to dress in a manner consistent with the student's gender identity, subject to any dress code adopted on a school site
Legal References
Policy Reference Disclaimer:
These references are not intended to be part of the policy itself, nor do they indicate the basis or authority for the Board to enact this policy. Instead, they are provided as additional resources for those interested in the subject matter of the policy.
STATE
CALIFORNIA CODE OF REGULATIONS
5 CCR 432 Student records
5 CCR 4600-4670 Uniform complaint procedures
5 CCR 4900-4965 Nondiscrimination in elementary and secondary educational programs receiving state or federal financial assistance
CIVIL CODE
1714.1 Liability of parent or guardian for act of willful misconduct by a minor
51.9 Liability for sexual harassment; business, service and professional relationships
EDUCATION CODE
200-270 Prohibition of discrimination
220.1 Prohibition of retaliation related to educational equity
220.3 Prohibition of disclosure of information related to student’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression
220.5 Prohibition of policies requiring disclosure of information related to student’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression
35292.5 School restrooms; all-gender restrooms
48900 Grounds for suspension or expulsion
48900.2 Additional grounds for suspension or expulsion; sexual harassment
48904 Liability of parent/guardian for willful student misconduct
48980 Parent/Guardian notifications
48985 Notices to parents in language other than English
49060-49079 Student records
GOVERNMENT CODE
12950.1 Sexual harassment training
FEDERAL
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATION
34 CFR 106.1-106.82 Nondiscrimination on the basis of sex in education programs
34 CFR 99.1-99.67 Family Educational Rights and Privacy
UNITED STATES CODE
20 USC 1092 Definition of sexual assault
20 USC 1221 Application of laws
20 USC 1232g Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974
20 USC 1681-1688 Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; discrimination based on sex
34 USC 12291 Definition of dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking
42 USC 1983 Civil action for deprivation of rights
42 USC 2000d-2000d-7 Title VI, Civil Rights Act of 1964
42 USC 2000e-2000e-17 Title VII, Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended
MANAGEMENT RESOURCES
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PUBLICATION
California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) Update FLASH #158: Guidance for Changing a Student’s Gender in CALPADS, July 2019
COURT DECISIONS
Gebser v. Lago Vista Independent School District (1998) 524 U.S. 274
Oona by Kate S. v. McCaffrey (1998, 9th Cir.) 143 F.3d 473
Reese v. Jefferson School District (2000, 9th Cir.) 208 F.3d 736
Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education (1999) 526 U.S. 629
Doe v. Petaluma City School District (1995, 9th Cir.) 54 F.3d 1447
Donovan v. Poway Unified School District (2008) 167 Cal.App.4th 567
Flores v. Morgan Hill Unified School District (2003, 9th Cir.) 324 F.3d 1130
CSBA PUBLICATION
Safe Schools: Strategies for Governing Boards to Ensure Student Success, 2011
Providing a Safe, Nondiscriminatory School Environment for Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Students, Policy Brief, February 2014
Legal Guidance on Rights of Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Students in Schools, October 2022
FEDERAL REGISTER
Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance, April 29, 2024, Vol. 89, No. 83, pages 33474-33896
U.S. DOE, OFFICE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS PUBLICATION
Sexual Harassment: It's Not Academic, September 2008
Revised Sexual Harassment Guidance: Harassment of Students by School Employees, Other Students, or Third Parties, January 2001
Examples of Policies and Emerging Practices for Supporting Transgender Students, May 2016
WEBSITES
CSBA District and County Office of Education Legal Services https://legalservices.csba.org/#
California Department of Education http://www.cde.ca.gov/
CSBA http://www.csba.org/
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights http://www2.ed.gov/ocr