Bullying/Harassment/Violence

Big Spring Independent School District (BSISD) is committed to providing a positive learning environment for all students that enhances personal safety and promotes respect, dignity, and equality among students. High standards are expected for both academic achievement and for behavior.

BSISD strives to ensure that all of its students and employees are free from bullying, sexual harassment, dating violence, and sexual violence. All charges of bullying, sexual harassment, dating violence, and sexual violence are to be taken very seriously by students, faculty, staff, administration, and parents/guardians. BSISD will make every effort to handle and respond to every charge and complaint filed by students and employees in a fair, thorough, and just manner. Every effort will be made to protect the due process rights of all victims and all alleged perpetrators.

Bullying is defined as written or oral expression or physical conduct that a school district's board of trustees or the board's designee determines:

1) To have the effect of physically harming a student, damaging a student's property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm to the student's person or of damage to the student's property; or
2) To be sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive to create an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational environment for a student.

Harassment is defined as conduct that threatens to cause harm or bodily injury to another student, is sexually intimidating, causes physical damage to the property of another student, subjects another student to physical confinement or restraint or maliciously and substantially harms another student’s physical or emotional health or safety.

Sexual harassment is conduct that is severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive in such a manner that it can be said to deprive the victim of access to the educational opportunities or benefits provided by the school. It is a form of harassment that includes touching someone in ways that are not wanted, sexual jokes, pressuring someone to have sex, threats or intimidation from a dating partner, or any other form of harassment of a sexual nature that would make a reasonable person uncomfortable.

Dating violence is defined as the intentional use of physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional abuse by a person to harm, threaten, intimidate, or control another person in a dating relationship. Dating violence is a pattern of coercive behavior that one partner exerts over the other for the purpose of establishing and maintaining power and control.

Sexual violence is defined as sexual assault, sexual abuse, or sexual stalking of a minor child or teenager, including sexual violence committed by perpetrators who are strangers to the victim and by perpetrators who are known or related by blood or marriage to the victim. This definition includes behavior including but not limited to incest, molestation, child abuse, stranger rape, and non-stranger rape.