Category
Bullying Policy—Reporting and Investigations
Category
Bullying Policy—Reporting and Investigations
State law addresses reporting and investigations.
Revised Code of Washington 28A.600.480 Reporting of harassment, intimidation, or bullying — Retaliation prohibited — Immunity.
(1) No school employee, student, or volunteer may engage in reprisal, retaliation, or false accusation against a victim, witness, or one with reliable information about an act of harassment, intimidation, or bullying.
(2) A school employee, student, or volunteer who has witnessed, or has reliable information that a student has been subjected to, harassment, intimidation, or bullying, whether verbal or physical, is encouraged to report such incident to an appropriate school official.
(3) A school employee, student, or volunteer who promptly reports an incident of harassment, intimidation, or bullying to an appropriate school official, and who makes this report in compliance with the procedures in the district’s policy prohibiting bullying, harassment, or intimidation, is immune from a cause of action for damages arising from any failure to remedy the reported incident.
Washington Administrative Code 392-190-059 Harassment, intimidation, and bullying prevention policy and procedure—School districts.
(1) Each school district must adopt a harassment, intimidation, and bullying prevention policy and procedure as provided for in RCW 28A.300.285.
(2) If the allegations in a written report of harassment, intimidation, or bullying pursued under the school district's procedure adopted under RCW 28A.300.285 indicate a potential violation of this chapter or the guidelines adopted under WAC 392-190-005, the school district's harassment, intimidation, and bullying compliance officer, designated under RCW 28A.300.285, must promptly notify the district employee designated under WAC 392-190-060. Or, if during the course of an investigation of harassment, intimidation, or bullying, the district becomes aware of a potential violation of this chapter or the guidelines adopted under WAC 392-190-005, the school district staff member investigating the report must promptly notify the district employee designated under WAC 392-190-060. Upon receipt of this information, the designated employee must notify the complainant that their complaint will also proceed under the discrimination complaint procedure in WAC 392-190-065 through 392-190-075, in addition to the procedures adopted under RCW 28A.300.285. School districts must provide this notice in a language that the complainant can understand, which may require language assistance for complainants with limited-English proficiency, in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In these cases, the investigation and response timeline set forth in WAC 392-190-065 begins when the school district knows or should have known that a written report of harassment, intimidation, or bullying involves allegations that the school district has violated this chapter or the guidelines adopted under WAC 392-190-005.
(3) This section is not intended to limit the scope of RCW 28A.300.285 or the use of a school district's procedures adopted under RCW 28A.300.285.
Washington State Prohibition of Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying - Procedure No. 3207P
F. Staff Intervention All staff members shall intervene when witnessing or receiving reports of harassment, intimdidation or bullying. Minor incidents that staff are able to resolve immediately, or incidents that do not meet the definition of harassment, intimidation, or bullying, may require no further action under this procedure.
G. Filing an Incident Reporting Form Any student who believes he or she has been the target of unresolved, severe, or persistent harassment, intimidation, or bullying, or any other person in the school community who observes or receives notice that a student has or may have been the target of unresolved, severe, or persistent harassment, intimidation, or bullying, may report incidents verbally or in writing to any staff member.
H. Addressing Bullying – Reports
- Step 1: Filing an Incident Reporting Form
- In order to protect a targeted student from retaliation, a student need not reveal his identity on an Incident Reporting Form. The form may be filed anonymously, confidentially, or the student may choose to disclose his or her identity (non-confidential).