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Anti-Bullying Policy

The Advent School
BULLYING PREVENTION and INTERVENTION PLAN and POLICY

1. Introduction
The Advent School provides a safe, secure, and respectful environment for learning. It is the School’s policy to expect and maintain an environment free of bullying, verbal, and physical misconduct that infringes on the safety or educational experience of any individual in our community.

The School’s Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan and Policy is written in response to the Massachusetts law against bullying and is put forth in order to prevent behaviors that will impede learning or interfere with the safety or well being of Advent students and employees. Our plan is consistent with all Advent School disciplinary policies that appear in the Directory and consistent with our discrimination and harassment policies that appear in the Employee Handbook.

Stricter standards of behavior may apply under The Advent School’s policies or Code of Ethics so that we may prevent inappropriate verbal and physical conduct before a student has been subject to bullying, as the law defines it. The School also reserves the right to apply disciplinary measures and other corrective action in the case of a single expression, act, or gesture.

It is important that all members of The Advent School community understand this policy; questions or concerns about this policy are to be addressed to the Head of School or Assistant Head of School, who are responsible for implementing the School’s Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan and Policy.

2. Policy against Bullying, Cyber-Bullying, and Retaliation
The Advent School prohibits student-to-student behaviors characterized as bullying, an adult staff member bullying a student or another staff member, or a student bullying an adult staff member.

Bullying and cyber-bullying are prohibited on school grounds, at school-sponsored events, activities, programs, and on school buses and at school bus stops. Bullying and cyber-bullying are prohibited through the use of technology or an electronic device owned, leased, or used by the School. In addition bulling and cyber-bullying are prohibited at a location, activity, function, or program that is not school-related or through the use of technology or an electronic device that is not owned, leased, or used by the School, if the bullying creates a hostile environment at school for a targeted student or students.

The School will not tolerate any form of bullying nor will we tolerate retaliation against any person who reports bullying, provides information during an investigation of bullying, witnesses, or has reliable information about a bullying incident.

We believe that bullying behaviors are harmful to students’ physical, emotional, social, psychological, and academic experiences. These behaviors negatively impact the victims, bystanders, and bullies and create a negative school climate.

3. Definition

Bullying is the repeated use of an intentionally aggressive or hostile behavior that involves an imbalance of power between the person who is bullied and the bully.

Bullying takes many forms, including but not limited to physical or verbal assaults, intimidation or non-verbal threats, social exclusion or isolation, or the use of technology or writing to convey embarrassing, slanderous, threatening, or intimidating messages. Bullying can include social exclusion or actions by more than one perpetrator, as well as harassing or intimidation behavior in person or via social media, including texting, phone voice mail, and on-line websites.
Bullying can be categorized by but is not defined by teasing, put-downs, name-calling, or false accusations, which are repeated continuously.

Bullying behaviors cause emotional or physical harm to the targeted student or his or her property; place the targeted student in reasonable fear of harm to himself, herself, his property, or her property; create a hostile environment at school for the targeted student; infringe on the rights of the targeted student; or substantially disrupt the learning process or orderly operation of the School.

Cyber-Bullying is bullying through the use of technology or electronic devices, such as cell phones, computers, or the internet. It includes but is not limited to email, instant messages, text messages, and internet postings, whether on a webpage, blog, or otherwise.

A hostile environment is a situation in which bullying causes the school environment to be permeated with intimidation, ridicule, or insult that is sufficiently severe to pervasive to alter a student’s educational experience.

Retaliation is any form of intimidation, reprisal, or harassment directed against a student who reports bullying, provides information during a bullying investigation, or witnesses bullying.

3. Prevention of Bullying and Cyber-Bullying
As responsible members of The Advent School community, all children learn that they will treat others and will be treated with respect and compassion. We design our curriculum to reflect the School’s values and beliefs in social justice and respect for differences. We expect students to observe and parents to reinforce our standards, policies, and Code of Ethics.

Administrators and teachers provide strong, consistent direction to students, taking time as appropriate to discuss issues and respond to student communication.

The School provides teacher training in The Responsive Classroom technique for the development of social skills; teachers are consistent in their expectation of high behavioral standards, and recognize that these expectations pertain to hallways, bus rides, dismissal, and the like. In a two-teacher per classroom and/or half group environment, we strive to ensure substantial teacher supervision in every educational setting.

Bullying Prevention programming takes many forms, and includes classroom activities, instruction, and a mission-based Code of Ethics. The faculty and administration design programs that instill positive social behaviors and promote attitudes of social justice throughout the school and in relation to others.

Problem solving, strategizing, and communication skills are central to this work. Teachers stop classroom activities and learning in order to directly address bullying behaviors, as appropriate. Role-playing, modeling, literature, and student challenges that address issues related to bullying are part of class meetings and routine learning experiences.

Teachers and administrators will be trained, resources will be provided for staff members and students, and bullying prevention strategies will be implemented as part of regular school and professional development programming.

Students at The Advent School are dependent upon the adults in their community to ensure a safe environment in which they can thrive intellectually, socially, and emotionally. We believe that teachers, administrators, and parents must model positive, pro-social behaviors, take steps to become aware of hurtful or bullying behaviors, and hold the line against student-to-student bullying.

4. Communication and Reports of Bullying, Cyber-Bullying
This Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan and Policy will be communicated to families, students, teachers and administrators, and others in the school community. It will be included in the School Directory and consistently reinforced in all classrooms and throughout the School.

Any person who is the target of bullying in any form or has witnessed an incident of bullying or has relevant information about any form of bullying prohibited by the School’s policy is urged to promptly report the matter orally or in writing to the Head of School, Assistant Head of School, or any staff member with whom the individual is comfortable. Any person who is subject to retaliation in violation of this policy or knows of such an incident is encouraged to make a report.

Any parent of a student who is the target of or who witnesses or has relevant information about bullying is strongly urged to make a report or notify the Head or Assistant Head of School.

Faculty and administration are required to report an incident of bullying immediately and may not make reports under this policy anonymously. There are to be no exceptions.

While the School cannot promise strict confidentiality, because information must be shared in order to conduct an effective investigation, the School releases information concerning complaints of bullying, cyber-bullying, and retaliation only on a legitimate need-to-know basis.

5. Steps for Responding to a Report of Bullying A. An immediate assessment is made when a complaint is brought to the Head, Assistant Head, or teacher as to what steps are to be taken to protect the well being of a student or students or to prevent the disruption of their learning while the matter is being investigated. Appropriate strategies, such as increased supervision and regular communication with families are then implemented. B. The School’s policy is to promptly notify parents of any student who is an alleged target and parents of any student who may have been accused of bullying after a complaint has been made. C. The following protocol is in order: 1. The Head and/or Assistant Head of School conduct an impartial investigation
2. The Head and/or Assistant Head of School conduct interviews with the alleged target, the person who made the complaint, and the person or persons against whom the complaint was made, as well as any person or persons who witnessed or who may have relevant information about the alleged incident.
3. The Head and/or Assistant Head of School will consult with teachers as appropriate.
4. Following the interviews the Head and/or Assistant Head of School will determine whether and to what extent the allegation has been substantiated.
5. The Head and/or Assistant Head of School will determine an appropriate disciplinary and/or remedial action. The goal of this process is to correct the situation to the extent possible and to take such steps as to prevent a repetition of such an incident, as well as any retaliation.
6. If a crime has been committed, such as any issue reportable under a 51-A of Massachusetts’s law, the School will contact the appropriate law enforcement authority.
7. When the School’s investigation has been completed, the Head of School will meet 1-1 with the student or students who were the target, the student or students against whom the complaint was made, and the parents of both parties to report the results of the investigation and the action to be taken. The amount of information in these meetings may be limited by confidentiality laws.
8. The Head and/or Assistant Head of School will make follow-up contact with any student found to have been targeted in violation of this policy and with his or her parents.

Conclusion: This policy is intended to prevent bullying, cyber-bullying or retaliation, to give students and families confidence in the School’s protocol, to encourage them to come forward whenever there is an incident or alleged bullying, and to provide appropriate discipline or corrective measures when they are found to be warranted.

Amended February 3, 2011