Bullying is against the law in all state schools and those in private schools can seek relief in the courts.
Senate Bill 2015, signed into law in 2010, prohibits bullying or harassing behavior in Mississippi schools. The bill requires all local school districts to adopt a policy prohibiting bullying and harassing behavior.
A school employee who has witnessed or has reliable information that a student or school employee has been subject to any act of bullying or harassing behavior shall report the incident to the appropriate school official.
When adults respond quickly and consistently to bullying behavior they send the message that it is not acceptable. Research shows this can stop bullying behavior over time.
Parents, school staff, and other adults in the community can help kids prevent bullying by talking about it, building a safe school environment, and creating a community-wide bullying prevention strategy.
Mississippi’s law says school districts shall include in its personnel policies, discipline policies and code of student conduct a prohibition against bullying or harassing behavior and adopt procedures for reporting, investigating and addressing such behavior.
The policies must recognize the fundamental right of every student to take reasonable actions as may be necessary to defend himself or herself from an attack by another student who has evidenced menacing or threatening behavior through bullying or harassing.
Administrators have five calendar days to investigate the alleged incident and file a report.
Any parent who who feels their child has been bullied can call 601-359-1737 for assistance and policy and procedure for reporting and stopping the bullying of a student.
The Bully Free Program was highlighted in state-wide training provided by the Mississippi Department of Education’s Office of Healthy Schools in partnership with the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office. Visit https://www.stopbullying.gov/to learn more about ways to prevent bullying.
Bullying or harassing behavior is any pattern of gestures or written, electronic, or verbal communications, or any physical act or any threatening communication, or any act reasonably perceived as being motivated by any actual or perceived differentiating characteristic that:
(a) places a student or school employee in actual and reasonable fear of harm to his or her person or damage to his or her property, or
(b) creates or is certain to create a hostile environment by substantially interfering with or impairing a student's education, including but not limited to educational performance, opportunities, or benefits.
A "hostile environment" means that the victim subjectively views the conduct as bullying or harassing behavior and the conduct is objectively severe or pervasive enough that a reasonable person would agree that it is bullying or harassing behavior.
This conduct constitutes bullying if that conduct interferes with a student's education or substantially disrupts the operation of a school.
Bullying or harassing behavior will not be condoned or tolerated when it takes place on school property, at any school-sponsored function, or on a school bus, or when it takes place off school property when such conduct, in the determination of the school superintendent or principal, renders the offending person’s presence a disruption to the operation of the educational environment of the school or a detriment to the best interest and welfare of the pupils and teacher of a class as a whole.
The school district must encourage anyone who has witnessed or has reliable information that a student or school employee has been subject to any act of bullying or harassing behavior to report the incident to the appropriate school official.
Retaliation or reprisal against any person, including a victim, a witness, or another person, who in good faith provides information concerning an incident of bullying or harassing behavior, is prohibited.
Mississippi school district are required to recognizes the fundamental right of every student to take “reasonable actions” as may be necessary to defend himself or herself from an attack by another student who has evidenced menacing or threatening behavior through bullying or harassing.
“Reasonable action” includes, but is not limited to, promptly reporting the bullying or harassing behavior to a teacher, principal, counselor, or other school employee.
These procedures must be appropriately placed in District personnel policy handbooks, school handbooks that include discipline policies and procedures, and any other policy or procedure that deals with student or employee behavior.
All state schools and school boards are reuired to direct the superintendent or designee to design and implement procedures for reporting, investigating, and addressing bullying and harassing behaviors.
District who do not adhere to state law are open to reprimand and civil actions by the public.
