§ 70-24-100.4 — School Safety and Bullying Prevention Act -

Oklahoma § 70-24-100.4

• Jurisdiction: Oklahoma
• Title 70: Schools

Text

Discipline of child - Prohibition of bullying at school and online – Policy requirements. A. Each school district board of education shall adopt a policy for the discipline of all children attending public school in that district, and for the investigation of reported incidents of bullying. The policy shall provide options for the discipline of the students and shall define standards of conduct to which students are expected to conform. The policy shall: 1. Specifically address bullying by students at school and by electronic communication, if the communication is specifically directed at students or school personnel and concerns bullying at school; 2. Contain a procedure for reporting an act of bullying to a school official or law enforcement agency, including a provision that permits a person to report an act anonymously. No formal disciplinary action shall be taken solely on the basis of an anonymous report; 3. Contain a requirement that any school employee that has reliable information that would lead a reasonable person to suspect that a person is a target of bullying shall immediately report it to the principal or a designee of the principal; 4. Contain a statement of how the policy is to be publicized including a requirement that: a. an annual written notice of the policy be provided to parents, guardians, staff, volunteers and students, with age-appropriate language for students, b. notice of the policy be posted at various locations within each school site, including but not limited to cafeterias, school bulletin boards, and administration offices, c. the policy be posted on the Internet website for the school district and each school site that has an Internet website, and d. the policy be included in all student and employee handbooks; 5. Require that appropriate school district personnel involved in investigating reports of bullying make a determination regarding whether the conduct is actually occurring; 6. Contain a procedure for providing timely notification to the parents or guardians of a victim of documented and verified bullying and to the parents or guardians of the perpetrator of the documented and verified bullying; 7. Identify by job title the school official responsible for enforcing the policy; 8. Contain procedures for reporting to law enforcement all documented and verified acts of bullying which may constitute criminal activity or reasonably have the potential to endanger school safety; 9. Require training for administrators and school employees as developed and provided by the State Department of Education in preventing, identifying, responding to and reporting incidents of bullying. The training shall be completed the first year an administrator or school employee is employed by a school district, and then once every fifth academic year; 10. Provide for an educational program as designed and developed by the State Department of Education and in consultation with the Office of Juvenile Affairs for students and parents in preventing, identifying, responding to and reporting incidents of bullying; 11. Establish a procedure for referral of a person who commits an act of bullying to a delinquency prevention and diversion program administered by the Office of Juvenile Affairs; 12. Address prevention by providing: a. consequences and remedial action for a person who commits an act of bullying, b. consequences and remedial action for a student found to have falsely accused another as a means of retaliation, reprisal or as a means of bullying, and c. a strategy for providing counseling or referral to appropriate services, including guidance, academic intervention, and other protection for students, both targets and perpetrators, and family members affected by bullying, as necessary; 13. Establish a procedure for: a. the investigation, determination and documentation of all incidents of bullying reported to school officials, b. identifying the principal or a designee of the principal as the person responsible for investigating incidents of bullying, c. reporting the number of incidents of bullying, and d. determining the severity of the incidents and their potential to result in future violence; 14. Establish a procedure whereby, upon completing an investigation of bullying, a school may recommend that available community mental health care, substance abuse or other counseling options be provided to the student, if appropriate; and 15. Establish a procedure whereby a school may request the disclosure of any information concerning students who have received mental health, substance abuse, or other care pursuant to paragraph 14 of this subsection that indicates an explicit threat to the safety of students or school personnel, provided the disclosure of the information does not violate the requirements and provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Section 2503 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes, Section 1376 of Title 59 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or any other state or federal laws regarding the disclosure of confidential information. B. In developing the policy, the district board of education shall make an effort to involve the teachers, parents, administrators, school staff, school volunteers, community representatives, local law enforcement agencies and students. The students, teachers, and parents or guardian of every child residing within a school district shall be notified by the district board of education of its adoption of the policy and shall receive a copy upon request. The school district policy shall be implemented in a manner that is ongoing throughout the school year and is integrated with other violence prevention efforts. C. The teacher of a child attending a public school shall have the same right as a parent or guardian to control and discipline such child according to district policies during the time the child is in attendance or in transit to or from the school or any other school function authorized by the school district or classroom presided over by the teacher. D. Except concerning students on individualized education plans (IEP) pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), P.L. No. 101-476, the State Board of Education shall not have authority to prescribe student disciplinary policies for school districts or to proscribe corporal punishment in the public schools. The State Board of Education shall not have authority to require school districts to file student disciplinary action reports more often than once each year and shall not use disciplinary action reports in determining a school district's or school site's eligibility for program assistance including competitive grants. E. The board of education of each school district in this state shall have the option of adopting a dress code for students enrolled in the school district. The board of education of a school district shall also have the option of adopting a dress code which includes school uniforms. F. The board of education of each school district in this state shall have the option of adopting a procedure that requires students to perform campus-site service for violating the district's policy. G. The State Board of Education shall: 1. Promulgate rules for periodically monitoring school districts for compliance with this section and providing sanctions for noncompliance with this section; 2. Establish and maintain a central repository for the collection of information regarding documented and verified incidents of bullying; and 3. Publish a report annually on the State Department of Education website regarding the number of documented and verified incidents of bullying in the public schools in the state.

Legislative History

Added by Laws 1971, c. 281, § 6-114, eff. July 2, 1971. Amended by Laws 1982, c. 326, § 2; Laws 1985, c. 329, § 13, emerg. eff. July 30, 1985; Laws 1995, c. 241, § 2, eff. July 1, 1995; Laws 1999, c. 320, § 34, eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 2000, c. 232, § 11, eff. July 1, 2000; Laws 2002, c. 149, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 2002. Renumbered from § 6-114 of this title by Laws 2002, c. 149, § 5, eff. Nov. 1, 2002. Amended by Laws 2008, c. 216, § 6, eff. Nov. 1, 2008; Laws 2013, c. 311, § 3; Laws 2014, c. 345, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2014; Laws 2016, c. 277, § 1; Laws 2023, c. 15, § 6, eff. July 1, 2023.