Are Schools Required to Have Anti-Bullying Policies?

School anti-bullying prevention and reporting policies aim to create awareness of what behaviors will not be tolerated, establish reporting procedures, and outline how schools should respond and support their students.

Bullying and Cyberbullying in Schools

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged minors that typically involves a real or perceived power imbalance and occurs repeatedly. The power imbalance can be any distinguishing quality, such as race, gender, sexual identity, family income, popularity, or appearance.

Bullying behavior takes several forms, including:

• verbal bullying (teasing, name calling, threatening harm)
• social bullying (hurting someone's reputation), and
• physical bullying (hurting a person or damaging or stealing property).

Cyberbullying involves bullying that takes place on digital devices (cellphones, computers), through electronic communications (messaging, texts), or over the internet (social media, blog posts).

Are Schools Required to Have Anti-Bullying Policies?

All 50 states have anti-bullying laws that apply to schools. These laws differ from state to state, and the requirements that schools must fulfill under those laws likewise vary. The federal government's StopBullying.gov website lays out rules and policies that schools should institute, as well as other actions schools should take, to prevent and address bullying.

Federal law doesn't have a specific school anti-bullying law. However, federally-funded schools must address any harassing or bullying behavior that overlaps with federal anti-discrimination laws, violates a student's civil rights, or interferes with a student's ability to take advantage of educational services.

State Laws Against Bullying and Cyberbullying in Schools

Most state laws require schools to develop and put into place anti-bullying policies designed to address and prevent student bullying and cyberbullying.

Model Policies for Schools to Address Bullying and Cyberbullying

These policies should include the following components:

• definitions of what constitutes "bullying" and "cyberbullying"
• reporting procedures for victims and school staff to follow
• investigation procedures that the school will follow, with immediate intervention steps to be taken after receiving reports of bullying
• processes for documenting investigations of, and responses to, bullying reports
• consequences and sanctions the school may impose if it finds bullying
• procedures for school officials to refer the victim, alleged bully, or both to counseling or other outside services
• training requirements for school staff on identifying, reporting, and responding to bullying, and
• communication plans to notify students, families, and staff of these policies.

A state might have a model policy for all schools to follow or require districts to adopt a policy that includes minimum standards.

Reporting Procedures

Under the model policy, school reporting procedures need to identify the individual(s) to whom reports should be made. The school policy should allow for anonymous reporting of bullying by students. And it should require school officials and employees to promptly report bullying they witness. Last, but not least, the policy should also state that retaliation against reporting students will not be tolerated.

Investigation and Immediate Intervention Procedure

In addition to setting up the investigatory steps school officials must take (speaking to the victim, alleged bully, and witnesses), the policy should set out the immediate intervention to be taken after a bullying report. Immediate intervention, which is done to protect students while the investigation is proceeding, includes notifying parents, protecting the victim from further targeting, and contacting law enforcement agencies if warranted.

Documentation Requirements

A good investigation always involves keeping records. These include the statements of the reporting victim, the alleged bully, any witnesses, and notes from discussions or interviews with others (such as parents or school officials). Documenting is essential to create a record that can be reviewed at a later point (when memories may have faded), and as evidence that the school responded appropriately to the report. The policy should set out clearly who may and may not view such documents in order to protect student confidentiality as much as legally possible. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ("FERPA") sets out the privacy rights of students.

Consequences and Sanctions for Bullying

The policy should also set forth the range of sanctions the school may impose if, after conducting the investigation, it finds that bullying has occurred. These sanctions are meant to address the bullying, punish and deter the bully, and protect the victim and others from future bullying. Sanctions are usually graduated from least to most severe (depending on the severity of the bullying found), and can range from counseling to suspension or expulsion.

Where to Find Help?

You can find information on your state's anti-bullying laws on StopBullying.gov or by contacting your state's Department of Education. StopBullying.gov also has information on what to do if you or someone you know is being bullied.

Call 911 to report a crime or if someone is in immediate danger. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline can be reached by calling or texting 988.