Any form of discrimination or harassment can be devastating to an individual’s academic progress, social relationship, and/or personal sense of self worth.
As such, the Board does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including transgender status, sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, age, religion, military status, ancestry, or genetic information which are classes protected by Federal and/or State law (collectively, "Protected Classes") occurring in the Corporation's educational opportunities, programs, and/or activities, or, if initially occurring off Corporation grounds or outside the Corporation's educational opportunities, programs, and activities, affecting the Corporation environment.
The Board also does not discriminate on the basis of Protected Classes in its employment policies and practices as they relate to students, and does not tolerate harassment of any kind.
Equal educational opportunities shall be available to all students, without regard to the Protected Classes, age (unless age is a factor necessary to the normal operation or the achievement of any legitimate objective of the program/activity), place of residence within the boundaries of the Corporation, or social or economic background, to learn through the curriculum offered in this Corporation. Educational programs shall be designed to meet the varying needs of all students.
In order to achieve the aforesaid goal, the Superintendent shall:
Curriculum Content
review current and proposed courses of study and textbooks to detect any bias based upon Protected Classes ascertaining whether or not supplemental materials, singly or taken as a whole, fairly depict the contribution of both genders, various races, ethnic groups, etc. toward the development of human society;
Staff Training
develop an ongoing program of in-service training for school personnel designed to identify and solve problems of bias based upon the Protected Classes in all aspects of the program;
Student Access
review current and proposed programs, activities, facilities, and practices to ensure that all students have equal access thereto and are not segregated on the basis of Protected Classes in any duty, work, play, classroom, or school practice, except as may be permitted under State regulations;
verify that facilities are made available, in accordance with Board Policy 7510 – Use of Corporation Facilities, for non-curricular student activities that are initiated by parents or other members of the community, including but not limited to any group officially affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America or any other youth group listed in Title 36 of the United States Code as a patriotic society;
Corporation Support
verify that like aspects of the Corporation program receive like support as to staff size and compensation, purchase and maintenance of facilities and equipment, access to such facilities and equipment, and related matters;
Student Evaluation
verify that tests, procedures, or guidance and counseling materials, which are designed to evaluate student progress, rate aptitudes, analyze personality, or in any manner establish or tend to establish a category by which a student may be judged, are not differentiated or stereotyped on the basis of Protected Classes.
The Superintendent shall appoint and publicize the name of the Compliance Officer(s) who is/are responsible for coordinating the Corporation’s efforts to comply with applicable Federal and State laws and regulations, including the Corporation’s duty to address in a prompt and equitable manner any inquiries or complaints regarding discrimination or denial of equal access. The Compliance Officer(s) also shall verify proper notice of nondiscrimination for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (as amended), Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (as amended), is provided to students, their parents, staff members, and the general public.
Compliance Officers
- Title IX – Sex
W. Douglas Thorne
District Counsel/Chief of Staff
2720 California Road
Elkhart, IN 46514
(574) 262-5517 / Email: dthorne@elkhart.k12.in.us
Title IX Training
- Title VI – Race, Color, National Origin and Limited English Proficiency
W. Douglas Thorne
District Counsel/Chief of Staff
2720 California Road
Elkhart, IN 46514
(574) 262-5517 / Email: dthorne@elkhart.k12.in.us
- Title VII – Civil Rights/Race, Color, Religion, Sex and National Origin
W. Douglas Thorne
District Counsel/Chief of Staff
2720 California Road
Elkhart, IN 46514
(574) 262-5517 / Email: dthorne@elkhart.k12.in.us
- §504 and Americans with Disabilities Act – Handicap/Disability
Anthony England
Director of Exceptional Learners
2720 California Road
Elkhart, IN 46514
(574) 262-5542 / Email: aengland@elkhart.k12.in.us
Reports and Complaints of Unlawful Discrimination and Retaliation
Students are encouraged to promptly report incidents of unlawful discrimination and/or retaliation occurring in the Corporation’s educational opportunities, programs and/or activities, or, if initially occurring off Corporation grounds or outside the Corporation’s educational opportunities, programs and activities, affecting the Corporation environment to an administrator, supervisor, or other Corporation-level official so that the Board may address the conduct. Any administrator, supervisor, or other Corporation-level official who receives such a complaint shall file it with a Compliance Officer within two (2) business days.
Any Corporation employee who directly observes unlawful discrimination/retaliation is obligated, in accordance with this policy, to report such observations to one of the Compliance Officers within two (2) business days. Additionally, any Corporation employee who observes an act of unlawful discrimination/retaliation is expected to intervene to stop the misconduct, unless circumstances make such an intervention dangerous, in which case the staff member should immediately notify other Corporation employees and/or local law enforcement officials, as necessary, to stop the misconduct. Thereafter, the Compliance Officer or designee must contact the employee within two (2) business days to advise him/her of the Corporation's intent to investigate the wrongdoing.
Complaint Procedures
Any student who believes that s/he has been subjected to unlawful discrimination or retaliation may seek resolution of his/her complaint by submitting his/her complaint to a building administrator.
Due to the sensitivity surrounding complaints of unlawful discrimination or retaliation, timelines are flexible for initiating the complaint process; however, individuals should make every effort to file a complaint within thirty (30) calendar days after the conduct occurs.
Privacy/Confidentiality
The Corporation will employ all reasonable efforts to protect the rights of the Complainant, the Respondent(s), and the witnesses to the extent possible, consistent with the Corporation’s legal obligations to investigate, take appropriate action, and comply with any discovery or disclosure obligations.
All records generated under the terms of this policy shall be maintained as confidential to the extent permitted by law. Confidentiality, however, cannot be guaranteed.
All Complainants proceeding through the formal investigation process will be advised that their identities may be disclosed to the Respondent(s).
During the course of a formal investigation, the Compliance Officer or designee will instruct each person who is interviewed about the importance of maintaining confidentiality. Any individual who is interviewed as part of an investigation is expected not to disclose to third parties any information that s/he learns and/or provides during the course of the investigation.
Sanctions and Monitoring
The Board shall vigorously enforce its prohibitions against unlawful discrimination/retaliation occurring in the Corporation’s educational opportunities, programs and/or activities, or, if initially occurring off Corporation grounds or outside the Corporation’s educational opportunities, programs and activities, affecting the Corporation environment by taking appropriate action reasonably calculated to stop and prevent further misconduct.
While observing the principles of due process, a violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including the discharge of an employee.
Retention of Public Records, Student Records, and Investigatory Records and Materials
All individuals charged with conducting investigations under this policy shall retain all information, documents, electronically stored information (“ESI”), and electronic media (as defined in Policy 8315) created and received as part of an investigation, including but not limited to complaints, responses, witness statements, documentary evidence, audio, video and/or digital recordings, handwritten and contemporaneous notes, e-mails related to the investigation and allegations, printouts, letters, determinations, and summaries. The information, documents, ESI, and electronic media (as defined in Policy 8315) retained may include public records and records exempt from disclosure under Federal and/or State law (e.g., student records).
The information, documents, ESI, and electronic media (as defined in Policy 8315) created or received as part of an investigation shall be retained in accordance with Policy 8310, Policy 8315, Policy 8320, Policy 8330 and the Corporation’s records retention schedule.
Retaliation
Retaliation against a person who (1) makes a report or files a complaint alleging unlawful discrimination occurring in the Corporation’s educational opportunities, programs and/or activities, or, if initially occurring off Corporation grounds or outside the Corporation’s educational opportunities, programs and activities, affecting the Corporation environment, or (2) participates as a witness in an investigation, is prohibited.
Training
The Compliance Officers also will oversee the training of Corporation employees so that all employees understand their rights and responsibilities under Federal and State law and are informed of the Board's policies and practices with respect to fully implementing and complying with the requirements of Federal and State law.
Notice
Notice of the Board's policy on nondiscrimination in educational programs and the identity of the Compliance Officers will be posted throughout the Corporation and published in any Corporation statement regarding the availability of educational opportunities, in any student handbooks, and in general information publications of the Corporation as required by Federal and State law and this policy.
The Superintendent shall annually attempt to identify children with disabilities, ages 3-22, who reside in the Corporation but do not receive public education. In addition, s/he shall establish procedures to identify students who are Limited English Proficient (LEP), including immigrant children and youth, to assess their ability to participate in Corporation programs, and develop and administer a program that meets the English language and academic needs of these students. This program shall include procedures for student placement, services, evaluation and exit guidelines and shall be designed to provide students with effective instruction that leads to academic achievement and timely acquisition of proficiency in English. As a part of this program, the Corporation will evaluate the progress of students in achieving English language proficiency in the areas of listening, speaking, reading and writing, on an annual basis.
