Nondiscrimination/Harassment

Cross References

Regulation 5145.3 

 
Original Adopted Date: 11/08/2018

Last Revised Date: 11/09/2022

Last Reviewed Date: 11/09/2022  

1. Publicize the district's nondiscrimination policy and related complaint procedures, including the coordinator/compliance officer's contact information, to students, parents/guardians, employees, volunteers, and the general public by posting them in prominent locations and providing easy access to them through district-supported communications
2. Post the district's policies and procedures prohibiting discrimination, harassment, student sexual harassment, intimidation, bullying, and cyberbullying, including a section on social media bullying that includes all of the references described in Education Code 234.6 as possible forums for social media, in a prominent location on the district's web site in a manner that is easily accessible to parents/guardians and students  (Education Code 234.6)
3. Post the definition of sex discrimination and harassment as described in Education Code 230, including the rights set forth in Education Code 221.8, in a prominent location on the district's web site in a manner that is easily accessible to parents/guardians and students  (Education Code 234.6)

1. Removing vulgar or offending graffiti
2. Providing training to students, staff, and parents/guardians about how to recognize unlawful discrimination, how to report it or file a complaint, and how to respond
3. Disseminating and/or summarizing the district's policy and regulation regarding unlawful discrimination
4. Consistent with laws regarding the confidentiality of student and personnel records, communicating to students, parents/guardians, and the community the school's response plan to unlawful discrimination or harassment
5. Taking appropriate disciplinary action against students, employees, and anyone determined to have engaged in wrongdoing in violation of district policy, including any student who is found to have filed a complaint of discrimination that the student knew was not true

1. Refusing to address a student by a name and the pronouns consistent with the student's gender identity
2. Disciplining or disparaging a student or excluding the student from participating in activities, for behavior or appearance that is consistent with the student's gender identity or that does not conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity, as applicable
3. Blocking a student's entry to the restroom that corresponds to the student's gender identity
4. Taunting a student because the student participates in an athletic activity more typically favored by a student of the other sex
5. Revealing a student's gender identity to individuals who do not have a legitimate need for the information, without the student's consent
6. Using gender-specific slurs
7. Physically assaulting a student motivated by hostility toward the student because of the student's gender, gender identity, or gender expression

1.  Right to privacy:  A student's intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming status is the student's private information. The district shall develop strategies to prevent unauthorized disclosure of students’ private information.  Such strategies may include, but are not limited to, collecting or maintaining information about student gender only when relevant to the educational program or activity, protecting or revealing a student’s gender identity as necessary to protect the health or safety of the student, and keeping a student’s unofficial record separate from the official record.  
   
   The district shall only disclose the information to others with the student's prior written consent, except when the disclosure is otherwise required by law or when the district has compelling evidence that disclosure is necessary to preserve the student's physical or mental well-being.  In any case, the district shall only allow disclosure of a student's personally identifiable information to employees with a legitimate educational interest as determined by the district pursuant to 34 CFR 99.31.  Any district employee to whom a student's intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming status is disclosed shall keep the student's information confidential. When disclosure of a student's gender identity is made to a district employee by a student, the employee shall seek the student's permission to notify the compliance officer.  If the student refuses to give permission, the employee shall keep the student's information confidential, unless the employee is required to disclose or report the student's information pursuant to this administrative regulation, and shall inform the student that honoring the student's request may limit the district's ability to meet the student's needs related to the student's status as an intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming student. If the student permits the employee to notify the compliance officer, the employee shall do so within three school days.
   
   As appropriate given the student's need for support, the compliance officer may discuss with the student any need to disclose the student's intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconformity status or gender identity or gender expression to the student's parents/guardians and/or others, including other students, teacher(s), or other adults on campus. The district shall offer support services, such as counseling, to students who wish to inform their parents/guardians of their status and desire assistance in doing so.
    
2.  Determining a Student's Gender Identity:  The compliance officer shall accept the student's assertion of gender identity and begin to treat the student consistent with that gender identity unless district personnel present a credible and supportable basis for believing that the student's assertion is for an improper purpose.
    
3. Addressing a Student's Transition Needs:  The compliance officer shall arrange a meeting with the student and, if appropriate, the student's parents/guardians to identify and develop strategies for ensuring that the student's access to educational programs and activities is maintained. The meeting shall discuss the intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming student's rights and how those rights may affect and be affected by the rights of other students and shall address specific subjects related to the student's access to facilities and to academic or educational support programs, services, or activities, including, but not limited to, sports and other competitive endeavors. In addition, the compliance officer shall identify specific school site employee(s) to whom the student may report any problem related to the student's status as an intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming individual, so that prompt action can be taken to address it.  Alternatively, if appropriate and desired by the student, the school may form a support team for the student that will meet periodically to assess whether the arrangements for the student are meeting the student's educational needs and providing equal access to programs and activities, educate appropriate staff about the student's transition, and serve as a resource to the student to better protect the student from gender-based discrimination.
4. Accessibility to Sex-Segregated Facilities, Programs, and Activities:  When the district maintains sex-segregated facilities, such as restrooms and locker rooms, or offers sex-segregated programs and activities, such as physical education classes, intermural sports, and interscholastic athletic programs, students shall be permitted to access facilities and participate in programs and activities consistent with their gender identity. To address any student's privacy concerns in using sex-segregated facilities, the district shall offer available options such as a gender-neutral or single-use restroom or changing area, a bathroom stall with a door, an area in the locker room separated by a curtain or screen, or use of the locker room before or after the other students. However, the district shall not require a student to utilize these options because the student is intersex, nonbinary, transgender, or gender-nonconforming. In addition, a student shall be permitted to participate in accordance with the student's gender identity in other circumstances where students are separated by gender, such as for class discussions, yearbook pictures, and field trips. A student's right to participate in a sex-segregated activity in accordance with the student's gender identity shall not render invalid or inapplicable any other eligibility rule established for participation in the activity.
5. Student Records:  Upon each student’s enrollment, the district is required to maintain a mandatory permanent student record (official record) that includes the student’s gender and legal name.
   
   A student's legal name as entered on the mandatory student record required pursuant to 5 CCR 432 shall only be changed with proper documentation.  A student’s gender as entered on the student’s official record required pursuant to 5 CCR 432 shall only be changed with written authorization of a parent/guardian having legal custody of the student.  (Education Code 49061)
   
   However, when proper documentation or authorization, as applicable, is not submitted with a request to change a student’s legal name or gender, any change to the student’s record shall be limited to the student’s unofficial records such as attendance sheets, report cards, and school identification
6. Names and Pronouns:  If a student so chooses, district personnel shall be required to address the student by a name and the pronoun(s) consistent with the student's gender identity, without the necessity of a court order or a change to the student's official district record.  However, inadvertent slips or honest mistakes by district personnel in the use of the student's name and/or consistent pronouns will, in general, not constitute a violation of this administrative regulation or the accompanying district policy.
7. Uniforms/Dress Code:  A student has the right to dress in a manner consistent with the student's gender identity, subject to any dress code adopted on a school site.

Cross References