Bullying. The buzzword of the 2000s which filled assemblies, professional development meetings, school policies, and OCR case loads. During the 2000s (ah, the decade of the iPod, rise of reality TV, hipsters, and Facebook), administrators and teachers were trained on the public health concerns over bullying. However, one crucial area that was often overlooked during this time was the implications for special education. With a renewed focus on bullying and its mental health impacts, especially those caused by social media, districts must ensure special education staff are aware of the necessary responses to bullying. Additionally, IEP teams should be reminded that the team must address the whole child’s needs, including bullying and chronic absenteeism or truancy.
For example, the Wisconsin Department of Education recently found that a district denied a student FAPE when it did not address incidents of bullying. In re: Student with Disability, 123 LRP 30499 (SEA WI 10/03/2023). Here, the student was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and was subjected to three incidents of bullying during the start of the 2022 school year. During the last incident, the student eloped from the classroom as a result of the bullying. These bullying incidents caused anxiety in the student that resulted in school avoidance. As a response to the incidents, the IEP team convened in October to address the anxiety and bullying. Notably, the IEP team determined the student’s IEP was appropriate and did not discuss any revisions or supports to address the bullying, possibly because those were “new” concerns unrelated to the student’s verification category. The student continued to have chronic absenteeism and did not return to school. The parents filed a state special education complaint, and the Department of Education found corrective action necessary.
Districts have an obligation to ensure that students with disabilities who are subjected to bullying continue to receive FAPE. Bullying can inhibit a student with a disability from receiving a meaningful educational benefit. To respond appropriately to allegations of bullying, a district should convene the student’s IEP team and determine whether the student’s needs have changed and what additional services could be provided to eliminate the bullying. For example, it may be necessary to include increased supervision or clarify the reporting process for the student. If the bullying also resulted in absenteeism, the IEP team should consider positive behavioral interventions and supports to encourage attendance. And yes, that is true even if the student’s verification category is different from the new issues present because of the bullying.
Please share this blog post with your special education staff and remind them of the implications bullying may have on a district’s response to students with disabilities. If you have any questions about special education, please feel free to contact Karen, Steve, Bobby, Coady, Jordan, Tyler or Sara at (402) 804-8000, or send everyone an email at ksb@ksbschoollaw.com.