Date: Mon, 17 Apr 2000 16:40:51 -0700 From: Jean Richter Subject: 4/17/2000 P.E.R.S.O.N. Project news 1. NH: Please help support safe schools bill 2. KY: More on student's harassment lawsuit 3. MA: Some perspective on high school football player who came out ============================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Apr 2000 12:08:06 -0400 To: schools@youth-guard.org From: culliton@jlc.net (Penny Culliton) Subject: NH: Pupil Safetly and Violence Prevention Act needs help [My apologies to those of you receiving multiple copies because you are on several of my e-mail lists. Penny] On Tuesday, the House Education Committe heard testimony on SB 360, the Pupil Safetly and Violence Prevention Act. (Text of bill is below.) Although the January hearing in the Senate went very well, and any concerns regarding teacher training and liabilty were addressed in the ammended version of the bill (which the Senate committee heard), the House committee evidently feels that such a bill is not needed. I was not preent at this hearing as I was at the Senate one, but according to Rick Trombley, the bill's primary sponsor, the "hearing was a disaster - basically they didn't get the need for the bill and then they lumped all harassment into one general category and said why not end all harassment - why not protect those kids that have green hair or are geeks - total misunderstanding of the bill and its need - just make it a bill that says school boards will stop harassment period " It thus seems that the House committe doesn't feel discrimination is an issue at ALL either, just harassment! IF YOU ARE A NH RESIDENT, please contact Warren C. Henderson, the sub-committee chair, in support of SB 360, the Pupil Safetly and Violence Prevention Act. Fax, e-mail or phone would be best, as time is very limited. Warren C. Henderson 8 Heritage Way Exeter, NH 03833-4316 Phone: (603)772-4285 FAX: (603)772-7188 Email Address: whexeter@aol.com Text Of Bill: STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand AN ACT adopting a pupil safety and violence prevention act. Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened: 1 New Chapter; Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 193-E the following new chapter: CHAPTER 193-F PUPIL SAFETY AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION 193-F:1 Title. This chapter shall be known, and may be cited as the "Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000." 193-F:2 Purpose and Intent. The general court hereby finds that: I. All pupils have the inalienable right to attend public schools that are safe, secure, and peaceful. Violence is the number one cause of death for young people and has become a public health problem of epidemic proportion. One of the legislature's highest priorities must be to protect our children from the plague of violence. II. The fastest growing violent crime is hate crime, and it is incumbent upon us to ensure that all pupils attending public school are protected from potentially violent discrimination. Educators see how violence affects youth every day; they know first hand that youth cannot learn if they are concerned about their safety. This chapter is designed to protect the institution of learning as well as our pupils. III. Not only do we need to address the issue of school violence but we also must strive to reverse the increase in teen suicide. The number of teens who attempt suicide, as well as the number who actually kill themselves, has risen substantially in recent years. Teen suicides in the United States have doubled in number since 1960 and every year over a quarter of a million adolescents in the United States attempt suicide. Approximately 4,000 of these attempts every year are completed. Suicide is the third leading cause of death for youths 15 through 24 years of age. To combat this problem we must seriously examine these grim statistics and take immediate action to ensure all pupils are offered equal protection from discrimination under New Hampshire law. 193-F:3 Equal Rights and Opportunities. It is the policy of the state of New Hampshire to afford all persons in public schools, regardless of their sex, ethnic group identification, race, national origin, religion, mental or physical disability, or sexual orientation, equal rights and opportunities in the educational institutions of the state. The purpose of this chapter is to prohibit acts which are contrary to this policy and to provide remedies therefor. 193-F:4 Discrimination Prohibited. I. No person shall be subjected to discrimination, including harassment, on the basis of sex, ethnic group identification, race, national origin, religion, color, mental or physical disability, or sexual orientation in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls pupils who receive state pupil financial aid. II. Each local school board shall adopt policies relative to non-discrimination and harassment which are consistent with the provisions of this chapter and with the rules adopted by the state board of education. III. Any school employee who has witnessed or knows of an incident involving any of the activities prohibited under this chapter shall report the incident to a person with authority to remedy the incident, who shall in turn report the incident to the superintendent. IV. The remedy required in paragraph III shall be defined by the local school board. The local school board shall provide opportunities for educators to have sufficient knowledge and skills to be effective in preventing or responding to acts prohibited under this chapter. V. A school employee who has reported violations under this chapter to the person with authority, or who has intervened under paragraph III, shall be immune from any cause of action which may arise from the failure to remedy the reported incident. VI. For purposes of this section, "person with authority" means the principal. VII. Any school employee acting under the provisions of this chapter shall be immune from any cause of action for any act taken pursuant to this chapter. 193-F:5 Religious Organizations; Applicability. This chapter shall not apply to an educational institution which is controlled by a religious organization if the application would not be consistent with the religious tenets of that organization. 193-F:6 Specific Curriculum Not Required. Nothing in this chapter requires the inclusion of any curriculum, textbook, presentation, or other material in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution. The omission of any curriculum, textbook, presentation, or other material in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution is not a violation of this chapter. 2 New Subparagraph; State Board of Education; Rulemaking; Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Rules Added. Amend RSA 21-N:9, II by inserting after subparagraph (bb) the following new subparagraph: (cc) Procedures for local school boards and persons with authority to respond to, and provide relief and remedy for, reported incidents of pupil discrimination and harassment prohibited by RSA 193-F, which shall include due process procedures at the local school board level. 3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2001. ============================================================================== From: SARATOGANY@aol.com Date: Fri, 7 Apr 2000 08:51:08 EDT Subject: KY: STUDENT SUIT CLAIMS SAME-SEX HECKLING; DISTRICT SAYS IT FOLLOWED THE LAW CSS-NYS Note: Student on student same-sex "sexual harassment" is covered under the March 1997 Title IX Guidance (US). Subsequently in 1998, a Fayetteville, Arkansas male student (William Wagner) prevailed in his case against his school district. That case was handled by the US Department of Education - Office of Civil Rights. Additional information on this case can be found at www.lambdalegal.org. LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER, April 4, 2000 100 Midland Avenue, Lexington, KY, 40508 (Fax 606-255-7236 ) (E-MAIL: hleditorial@herald-leader.com ) ( http://www.kentuckyconnect.com/ ) SOMERSET TEEN ALLEGES SCHOOL HARASSMENT WAS IGNORED SUIT CLAIMS SAME-SEX HECKLING; DISTRICT SAYS IT FOLLOWED THE LAW By Ty Tagami, South-Central Kentucky Bureau SOMERSET -- When Brad Putman walked down the hallway at Somerset High School, the other teen-agers parted like water to avoid touching him. In the classroom and in the hallways, boys said he was gay, threw things at him and ridiculed him with phony sexual advances, even grabbing his groin, Putman says in a recently filed lawsuit. In the student parking lot, someone painted car-sized stick figures that looked to be engaged in a sex act. Nearby these words were scrawled: "This is for Bradley Buttman." [Deleted article. filemanager@qrd.org] Reach Ty Tagami at (606) 678-4655 or ttagami@herald-leader.com. ================================================================================ From: SARATOGANY@aol.com Date: Fri, 7 Apr 2000 09:04:58 EDT Subject: MA: The bravery of the young and not so young (more on Corey Johnson) Bay Windows, April 6-12, 2000 631 Tremont St., Boston, MA 02118 (Fax: 617-266-5973 ) (E-MAIL: letters@baywindows.com ) ( http://www.baywindows.com ) The bravery of the young and not so young by Jeff Epperly Let us this week sing the praises of Corey Johnson, a senior last year at Masconomet Regional High School. Corey came out to his schoolmates and teachers in a big way, with positive results that suggest how far we have come on the subject of homosexuality. Corey's part of an ever increasing number of young people coming out at ages that lend hope to those of us who, mostly with good reasons, never thought of doing such a thing when we were seniors in high school. What made Corey's story in last week's newspaper unique was that he was also co-captain of the MRHS football team and he came out mid-season to his coaches and teammates - with surprisingly touching support in a jock milieu not known for its sensitivity to those who are different. [Deleted article. filemanager@qrd.org] [Corey Johnson is online at CoreyJohnson2000@aol.com] ============================================================================ This message has been distributed as a free informational service for the expressed interest of non-profit research and educational purposes only. "The Actual or Perceived GLBT Student Protection Project" A project of: Coalition for Safer Schools of NYS John Myers Director of Operations and Programs PO Box 2345 Malta, NY 12020 (518) 587-0176 Email: saratogany@aol.com =============================================================================== Jean Richter -- richter@eecs.berkeley.edu The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project (Public Education Regarding Sexual Orientation Nationally) These messages are archived by state on our information-loaded free web site: http://www.youth.org/loco/PERSONProject/