13. HARASSMENT POLICY

De La Salle High School is committed to providing a learning environment that is free from unlawful harassment or bullying (including cyberbullying) in any form, including on the basis of any of the following categories: sex, gender, pregnancy, national origin, race, creed, color, age (40 and over), physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic prohibited by law. This policy applies to unlawful harassment by employees, coaches, students, volunteers, or other third parties while on campus, or communicating about school matters. This policy also applies to Carondelet students

Harassment includes verbal, visual, and physical conduct on the basis of any of the protected categories listed above and that are severe or pervasive enough to create a school environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Harassing conduct can occur in person, by telephone, mail, voice, or electronic mail, or by social media communications (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, and any other social media platform), and during school or in connection to school-related activities. Harassing conduct can take many forms and includes, but is not limited to derogatory comments, epithets, slurs, jokes, pictures, cartoons, or posters

Prohibited harassment includes, but is not limited to, the following behavior:

1 Unwanted sexual advances or propositions; e g , requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when any or all of the following occurs: a. Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of a student’s academic status or progress; b. Submission to or rejection of such conduct by a student is used as the basis of academic decisions affecting the individual; c Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s academic performance or of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive educational environment

2 Written or Verbal Conduct; e g , sexually suggestive words, invitations, sexually-oriented noises, remarks, comments, jokes, slurs, epithets, or statements about a person ’ s sexuality or sexual experience.

3. Physical Conduct; e.g., unwanted or inappropriate physical touching, contact, assault, deliberate impeding or blocking movements, or any intimidating interference with normal work or movement.

4 Visual Conduct; e g , posters, calendars, books, magazines, screen savers, cartoons, pictures, drawings, sexually oriented gestures, or other materials

5 Retaliation for having reported or threatened to report harassment

Note: As a California non-profit religious corporation, De La Salle is exempt from the California Fair Employment and Housing Act as well as most provisions of the California Education Code The policy expressed here is adopted and enforced by the school irrespective of laws addressing harassment, retaliation, or discrimination based on protected classifications

6 Cyberbullying is defined as willful and repeated harm inflicted on another person through electronic media (e g , Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Periscope, and the like). Any student who sends a partial or fully naked picture of a minor or attempts to be harmful or cruel to another student or individual, in the judgment of the Dean, by sending or posting offensive material (including words, pictures, or videos) using a cell phone, the Internet or other electronic device, can be suspended from school, placed on disciplinary probation, or dismissed from the school. Serious incidents, including sexting, or threats of violence, may be turned over to law enforcement authorities for investigation

It is the responsibility of De La Salle High School to:

1 Implement the school’s harassment policy through regular meetings with all administrators, ensuring that they understand this policy and its importance;

2 Make all faculty, staff, students, and parents aware of this policy and the commitment of the school toward its strict enforcement;

3. Remain watchful for conditions that create or may lead to a hostile or offensive school environment; and

4. Establish practices designed to create a school environment consistent with this policy.

It is the responsibility of each student to:

1 Read thoroughly and understand this policy;

2 Conduct himself in a manner that contributes to a positive school

3 environment;

4. Refrain from conduct that is harassing or bullying in violation of this policy;

5. Consider immediately informing anyone harassing or bullying that the behavior is offensive and unwelcome;

6. Report all incidents of harassment or bullying to the Dean of Students; and

7 Cooperate with any investigation conducted by De La Salle

13.1 COMPLAINT FILING AND INVESTIGATION PROCEDURES

De La Salle High School will treat allegations of harassment seriously and will review and investigate such allegations in a prompt, confidential, and thorough manner.

The following procedures will be followed for filing and investigating an unlawful harassment claim:

1 The student may first choose to tell the individual causing the unlawful harassment that his/her conduct is offensive and must stop If the objectionable behavior does not cease immediately, the student must report the harassment to the Dean of Students, or to a teacher who will report it to the Dean of Students. If the teacher is unavailable or is the subject of the allegation, the matter should be reported to the President If the President is unavailable or is the subject of the allegation, the matter should be reported to the Chair of the Board of Trustees. Additionally, in the case of sexual harassment allegations, the student is free to raise the issue with another same-sex administrator if he/she prefers to do so The student can raise concerns and make reports without fear of reprisal or retaliation.

2 The claim, whether written or verbal, will be investigated thoroughly, involving only the necessary parties Confidentiality will be maintained to the extent possible.

3 The investigation will include a meeting with the person alleged to have harassed, sharing with that person the nature of the allegations as well as the name of the person bringing the allegations. If appropriate, the alleged harasser will be placed on administrative leave during the course of the investigation

4. Once the facts of the case have been gathered, the President will decide what, if any, disciplinary action is warranted The disciplinary action will relate to the nature, context, and seriousness of the harassment and can include all disciplinary actions up to and including immediate termination/expulsion

5 If the complaint is against a non-employee or non-student, such as a parent, volunteer, or vendor, the school will take steps, within its power, to investigate and eliminate the problem.

A charge of harassment shall not, in and of itself, create the presumption of wrongdoing However, substantiated acts of harassment will result in disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal Students found to have filed false or frivolous charges will also be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal

In September 2019, the Brothers of the Christian Schools of the District of San Francisco New Orleans approved Administrative Policies and Procedures for Sexual Misconduct as it relates to the Brothers. These policies and procedures are available, upon request, from the Office of the President.

13.2 HAZING

Hazing occurs when an act is committed against a student or a student is coerced into committing an act (e g verbally, physically, and/or electronically) that creates a substantial risk of harm to the student or to any third party in order for the student to be initiated into or affiliated with any school group, including, but not limited to, informal groups of friends, club, athletic team, grade level, activity or organization. Hazing is not tolerated