Following the new anti-bullying rules put in place for this school year and beyond, the school district will add a new policy and regulations regarding “dating violence at school” for children in grades seven through 12.
The school district will read the full policy and regulations and vote to adopt them at its first meeting of the new year, set for Tuesday, January 10, at 7:30 p.m.
According to district spokesperson Gerri Hutner, on September 19 the state released guidance on a mandatory model policy and regulation on dating violence. Assistant superintendent David Aderhold then led the in-house efforts to set policy and regulations.
“Dating violence” is defined as a pattern of behavior where one person uses or threatens to use physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional abuse to control a dating partner. “At school” can include anywhere on school property, on a school bus or school-related vehicle, at a school bus stop, or at any school-sponsored activity or event whether or not that is on school grounds.
All school staff members will be required to “take reasonable measures to prevent acts or incidents of teen dating violence” and are required to report all acts or incidents of dating violence at school to the principal verbally by the end of the same school day as well as in a written report no less than a day later.
Protocol for the administration’s investigation will be outlined for the community. This will include speaking with bystanders or witnesses to the incident and taking written statements from them; making a determination whether to involve law enforcement; and making referrals if an assessment by a social worker, counselor, or psychologist determine that the mental health of one or both students involved has been “placed at risk.”
Intervention methods for dating violence could include the following: parent conferences with the families of the aggressor and the victim; student counseling, peer support groups, corrective instruction, behavioral management plans, and possibly alternative placement.
Consequences for students determined to be aggressors of dating violence can include temporary removal from classes, detentions, in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, police being called in and even expulsion.
The new policy originated with the New Jersey State Assembly’s approval of related legislation on March 14, 2011.
