Creating School Environments Free from Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying

Children in our schools need to be free of fear and distress in order to develop fully academically, socially, and emotionally. Sadly, many students have been subject to harassment, intimidation, and bullying in schools. The situation is worse when students are discriminated against or targeted for their immutable characteristics. These include, but are not limited to, sex, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, and ELL status. This course will examine bullying through the framework of Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying (HIB) law and theory - which is the foundation of many states’ anti-bullying policies. Teachers in this course will begin the course by learning about the threat of harassment, intimidation, discrimination, and bullying - and the legal and ethical responsibilities of educators to counteract these harmful acts. Educators will also analyze various case studies to see how the issues may play out in a real-life scenario. This information and analysis incl