Bill Text: IN HB1259 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Antibullying.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-09 - First reading: referred to Committee on Education [HB1259 Detail]
Download: Indiana-2012-HB1259-Introduced.html
Citations Affected: IC 5-2-10.1-12; IC 20-20-8-8; IC 20-30-5-5.5;
IC 20-33-8; IC 20-34-6-1; IC 21-39-2-2.1.
Synopsis: Antibullying. Requires the department of education, in
consultation with school safety specialists and school counselors, to
develop guidelines to assist school corporations and safe school
committees in establishing bullying prevention programs and
investigation and reporting procedures. Requires each school
corporation to include the number and nature of bullying incidents that
occur within the school corporation on the school corporation's annual
performance report. Modifies the definition of "bullying". Requires
each school corporation to include detailed procedures for investigation
and reporting of bullying behaviors in the school corporation's
discipline rules. Requires each school corporation to include detailed
procedures outlining the use of follow-up services for support services
for the victim and bullying education for the bully in the school
corporation's discipline rules. Sets out a bullying reporting requirement
for each school corporation. Requires that if a board of trustees of a
state educational institution elects to govern, by regulation or another
means, the conduct of students, faculty, employees, and others on the
property owned, used, or occupied by the state educational institution,
the regulation must include a policy prohibiting bullying.
Effective: July 1, 2012.
January 9, 2012, read first time and referred to Committee on Education.
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A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning
education.
(b) The department of education and the school corporation's school safety specialist shall provide materials and guidelines to assist a safe school committee in developing a plan for the school that addresses the following issues:
(1) Unsafe conditions, crime prevention, school violence, bullying, and other issues that prevent the maintenance of a safe school.
(2) Professional development needs for faculty and staff to implement methods that decrease problems identified under subdivision (1).
(3) Methods to encourage:
(A) involvement by the community and students;
(B) development of relationships between students and school faculty and staff; and
(C) use of problem solving teams.
(c) As a part of the plan developed under subsection (b), each safe school committee shall provide a copy of the floor plans for each building located on the school's property that clearly indicates each exit, the interior rooms and hallways, and the location of any hazardous materials located in the building to the law enforcement agency and the fire department that have jurisdiction over the school.
(d) The guidelines developed under subsection (b) must include information that assists school corporations and safe school committees in:
(1) developing and implementing bullying prevention programs; and
(2) establishing investigation and reporting procedures related to bullying.
(1) Student enrollment.
(2) Graduation rate (as defined in IC 20-26-13-6).
(3) Attendance rate.
(4) The following test scores, including the number and percentage of students meeting academic standards:
(A) ISTEP program test scores.
(B) Scores for assessments under IC 20-32-5-21, if appropriate.
(C) For a freeway school, scores on a locally adopted assessment program, if appropriate.
(5) Average class size.
(6) The number and percentage of students in the following groups or programs:
(A) Alternative education, if offered.
(B) Career and technical education.
(C) Special education.
(D) High ability.
(E) Remediation.
(F) Limited English language proficiency.
(G) Students receiving free or reduced price lunch under the
national school lunch program.
(H) School flex program, if offered.
(7) Advanced placement, including the following:
(A) For advanced placement tests, the percentage of students:
(i) scoring three (3), four (4), and five (5); and
(ii) taking the test.
(B) For the Scholastic Aptitude Test:
(i) test scores for all students taking the test;
(ii) test scores for students completing the academic honors
diploma program; and
(iii) the percentage of students taking the test.
(8) Course completion, including the number and percentage of
students completing the following programs:
(A) Academic honors diploma.
(B) Core 40 curriculum.
(C) Career and technical programs.
(9) The percentage of grade 8 students enrolled in algebra I.
(10) The percentage of graduates who pursue higher education.
(11) School safety, including:
(A) the number of students receiving suspension or expulsion
for the possession of alcohol, drugs, or weapons; and
(B) the number of incidents reported under IC 20-33-9; and
(C) the number and nature of bullying incidents reported
under IC 20-34-6.
(12) Financial information and various school cost factors,
including the following:
(A) Expenditures per pupil.
(B) Average teacher salary.
(C) Remediation funding.
(13) Technology accessibility and use of technology in
instruction.
(14) Interdistrict and intradistrict student mobility rates, if that
information is available.
(15) The number and percentage of each of the following within
the school corporation:
(A) Teachers who are certificated employees (as defined in
IC 20-29-2-4).
(B) Teachers who teach the subject area for which the teacher
is certified and holds a license.
(C) Teachers with national board certification.
(16) The percentage of grade 3 students reading at grade 3 level.
(17) The number of students expelled, including the number
participating in other recognized education programs during their
expulsion.
(18) Chronic absenteeism, which includes the number of students
who have been absent more than ten (10) days from school within
a school year without being excused.
(19) The number of students who have dropped out of school,
including the reasons for dropping out.
(20) The number of student work permits revoked.
(21) The number of student driver's licenses revoked.
(22) The number of students who have not advanced to grade 10
due to a lack of completed credits.
(23) The number of students suspended for any reason.
(24) The number of students receiving an international
baccalaureate diploma.
(25) Other indicators of performance as recommended by the
education roundtable under IC 20-19-4.
(b) The department, in consultation with school safety specialists and school counselors, shall prepare outlines or materials for the instruction described in subsection (a) and incorporate the instruction in grades 1 through 12.
(c) Instruction on bullying prevention may be delivered by a school safety specialist, school counselor, or any other person with training and expertise in the area of bullying prevention and intervention.
(1) places the student in reasonable fear of harm to the student's person or property;
(2) has a substantially detrimental effect on the student's
physical or mental health;
(3) has the effect of substantially interfering with the student's
academic performance; or
(4) has the effect of substantially interfering with the student's
ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities,
and privileges provided by the school.
(1) prohibit bullying; and
(2) include:
(A) provisions concerning education, parental involvement,
(B) a detailed procedure for the prompt investigation of incidents of bullying that includes:
(i) appropriate responses to bullying behaviors that occur on school property, on a school bus, or at a school sponsored activity;
(ii) provisions for anonymous and personal reporting of bullying incidents to a teacher or other school staff;
(iii) timetables for reporting of bullying incidents to parents, school administrators, the school superintendent, or law enforcement, if applicable; and
(iv) discipline provisions for teachers, school staff, or school administrators who fail to initiate or conduct an investigation of a bullying incident; and
(C) a detailed procedure outlining the use of follow-up services that includes:
(i) support services for the victim; and
(ii) bullying education for the bully.
(b) The discipline rules described in subsection (a) must apply when a student is:
(1) on school grounds immediately before or during school hours, immediately after school hours, or at any other time when the school is being used by a school group;
(2) off school grounds at a school activity, function, or event;
(3) traveling to or from school or a school activity, function, or event; or
(4) using property or equipment provided by the school.
(c) The discipline rules described in subsection (a) must prohibit
bullying through the use of data or computer software that is accessed
through a:
(1) computer;
(2) computer system; or
(3) computer network;
of a school corporation.
(d) This section may not be construed to give rise to a cause of
action against a person or school corporation based on an allegation of
noncompliance with this section. Noncompliance with this section may
not be used as evidence against a school corporation in a cause of
action.
(1) The number of arrests of students on school corporation property, including arrests made by law enforcement officers, security guards, school safety specialists, and other school corporation employees, and any citizen arrests.
(2) The offenses for which students were arrested on school corporation property.
(3) The number of contacts with law enforcement personnel from a school corporation employee that have resulted in arrests of students not on school corporation property.
(4) Statistics concerning the age, race, and gender of students arrested on school corporation property and categorizing the statistics by offenses.
(5) Whether the school corporation has established and employs a school corporation police department under IC 20-26-16, and if so, report:
(A) the number of officers in the school corporation police department; and
(B) the training the officers must complete.
(6) If the school corporation employs private security guards to enforce rules or laws on school property, a detailed explanation of the use of private security guards by the school corporation.
(7) If the school corporation has an agreement with a local law enforcement agency regarding procedures to arrest students on school property, a detailed explanation of the use of the local law enforcement agency by the school corporation.
(8) The number and nature of reported bullying incidents involving a student of the school that occur when a student is:
(A) on school grounds immediately before or after school hours, during school hours, or at any other time when the school is being used by a school group;
(B) off school grounds at a school activity, function, or event;
(C) traveling to or from school or a school activity, function, or event; or
(D) using property or equipment provided by the school.
(b) By August 1 of each year, the department shall submit a report to:
(1) the legislative council;
(2) the education roundtable established by IC 20-19-4-2;
(3) the board for the coordination of programs serving vulnerable individuals established by IC 4-23-30.2-8; and
(4) the criminal justice institute;
providing a summary of the reports submitted to the department under subsection (a). The report to the legislative council must be in an electronic format under IC 5-14-6.
(c) By August 1 of each year, the department must post the reports described in subsections (a) and (b) on the department's Internet web site.
(1) Ball State University.
(2) Indiana University.
(3) Indiana State University.
(4) Purdue University.
(5) University of Southern Indiana.
(b) As used in this section, "bullying" means overt, repeated acts or gestures, including verbal or written communications transmitted in any manner (including digitally or electronically), physical acts committed, or any other behaviors committed by a student or group of students against another student with the intent to harass, ridicule, humiliate, intimidate, or harm the other student and create for the other student, while the student is on the property owned, used, or occupied by the state educational institution, an objectively hostile environment that:
(1) places the student in reasonable fear of harm to the
student's person or property;
(2) has a substantially detrimental effect on the student's
physical or mental health;
(3) has the effect of substantially interfering with the student's
academic performance; or
(4) has the effect of substantially interfering with the student's
ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities,
and privileges provided by the state educational institution.
(c) If a board of trustees of a state educational institution elects
to govern, by regulation or another means, the conduct of students,
faculty, employees, and others on the property owned, used, or
occupied by the state educational institution, the regulation must
include a policy prohibiting bullying.
