Six Bullying Instances Confirmed in Westfield Schools

The Board of Education recently released its report on Violence, Vandalism and Substance Abuse incidents and Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying incidents that occurred between Jan. 1 and June 30.

The report outlined that 45 investigations were conducted into possible HIB incidents during this period of time, but only six were confirmed following the required 10-day investigation, according to Superintendent Dr. Margaret Dolan.

Each school in the district has one or more Anti-Bullying Specialist that will carry out the initial investigation into incidents reported. The specialist will then give their findings to the principal of the school who will compare the report to the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights and determine if it is an actual HIB incident.

The next step is for the principal to forward their determination to Superintendent Dolan, who will make her own determination and present it to the Board of Education in private session. The board will then vote if they agree the incident fits the outline set forth by the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights as a Harassment, Intimidation or Bullying incident.

After the board has made a decision, the parents of the student(s) are informed. If the parent does not agree, they can appeal the Board during private session and the board members will reevaluate their decision and take another vote in the session. If the parent(s) are still not satisfied, they can make another appeal to the Commissioner of Education.

One Westfield parent, who says two students left a voicemail threatening her children and were not punished under this law, has questioned the way the district handled the implementation of the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights. 

The HIB report specifies incidents under protected categories that include: Race, Color, Religion, Ancestry, National Origin, Gender, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity/Expression, Mental, Physical or Sensory Disability and other distinguishing characteristic.

Of the categories, one incident was attributed to race, one to color, two to gender, one to sexual orientation, one to gender identity/expression and four in other distinguishing characteristics (incidents can have more than one category).

Under the New Jersey Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights, Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying only exists under one of those protected categories, according to Dolan.

She added that the district does not have a pattern in one area based on the data during this time period.

“It’s a lengthy process,” Dolan said. “But thorough.”

She explained that many people are involved in comparing each incident to the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights to see if it is an actual case.

The report also covered Violence, Vandalism and Substance Abuse incidents. During the time period of Jan. 1, 2013 to Jun. 30, 2013, 17 incidents were reported. In one, the police were notified and no complaint was filed and 19 others resulted in a short-term suspension. (The number of suspensions is greater than incidents, because the incident can include more one than student).

The Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights document can be found, here.