Policy 5145.9 - Hate-Motivated Behavior

Hate-Motivated Behavior

The Board of Education is committed to providing a safe, respectful, and inclusive learning environment that protects students from discrimination, harassment, intimidation, bullying, and other behavior motivated by a person's hostility towards another person's real or perceived ethnicity, national origin, immigrant status, sex, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, age, disability, or any other physical or cultural characteristic identified in Education Code 200 or 220, Government Code 11135 or Penal Code 422.55.  The Superintendent or designee shall design strategies to promote harmonious relationships among students, prevent incidents of hate-motivated behavior to the extent possible, and address such incidents if they occur.

The Superintendent or designee shall collaborate with regional programs and community organizations to promote safe environments for youth.  Such collaborative efforts shall focus on ensuring an efficient use of district and community resources, developing effective prevention strategies and response plans, providing assistance to students affected by hate-motivated behavior, and/or educating students who have perpetrated hate-motivated acts.

The district shall provide students with age-appropriate instruction that includes the development of social-emotional learning, promotes their understanding of and respect for human rights, diversity, and acceptance in a multicultural society, and provides strategies to manage conflicts constructively.

The Superintendent or designee shall ensure the rules prohibiting hate-motivated behavior and procedures for reporting a hate-motivated incident are provided to students and parents/guardians.

The Superintendent or designee shall provide staff with training on recognizing and preventing hate-motivated behavior and on effectively enforcing rules for appropriate student conduct.

Grievance Procedures
A student or parent/guardian who believes the student is a victim of hate-motivated behavior is strongly encouraged to report the incident to a teacher, the principal, or other staff member.

Any staff member who is notified that hate-motivated behavior has occurred, observes such behavior, or otherwise becomes aware of an incident shall immediately contact the principal or the compliance officer responsible for coordinating the district’s response to complaints and complying with state and federal civil rights laws. As appropriate, they shall also contact law enforcement.

Any complaint of hate-motivated behavior shall be investigated and, if determined to be discriminatory, shall be resolved in accordance with law and the district’s uniform complaint procedures specified in BR 1312.3 -Uniform Complaint Procedures. If, during the investigation, it is determined that a complaint is about nondiscriminatory behavior, the principal or designee shall inform the complainant and shall take all necessary actions to resolve the complaint.

This policy shall be posted in a prominent location on the district’s website in a manner that is readily and easily accessible to parents/guardians and student.