HB 208, student bullying and....Dennis gives some suggestions to the House Education Committee

November 16, 2011

TO: Gerald Stebelton, Chair of the House Education Committee, Ohio House of Representatives

FROM: Dennis Leone, Assistant Professor, Ashland University—Columbus Center

SUBJECT: Administrative Concerns with Proposed House Bill 208

This bill will amend Ohio’s current anti-bullying law by prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or bullying “that is based on any actual or perceived trait or characteristic of a student.” Proposed House Bill 208 attempts to enumerate 19 traits or characteristics of a student which “includes but is not limited to age, color, creed, national origin, race, religion, marital status, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical attributes, physical or mental ability or disability, ancestry, political party preference, political beliefs, socio-economic status, or familial status.”

1. Current law prohibits “harassment, intimidation, or bullying” of any kind, and adequately permits administrators to discipline students when such problems arise.

2. Adding “that is based on any actual or perceived trait or characteristic of a student” is asking school administrators to become mind-readers. How does one prove whether another’s actions were based on something that was perceived? If two students (one who happens to be white and one who happens to be black) get into a shoving match during a pickup basketball game in gym, will proposed HB 208 require administrators to decide if the incident was, or was not, race-related?

3. Attempting to enumerate 19 specific “traits” and “characteristics” of students to existing law is unnecessarily elevating those traits specifically above other misconduct. For example, if one student assaults another student in school, would proposed HB 208 translate into it meaning that the assault was worse misconduct if the student assaulted a student who happened to be black, Hispanic, Scandinavian, gay, in opposition to America’s capture of Saddam Hussein, or a card-carrying member of the Taliban? Does the bill give a greater, elevated, special protective status for students due to 19 enumerated traits?

4. Does proposed HB 208 open the door for a student to claim harassment by another student because, for example, he/she is poor, has a mild learning disability, is bisexual, has two parents that are of the same sex, or has parents of different races, etc., when – in truth – the person accused of being the bully didn’t have any idea that the other student had any of those traits or characteristics?

5. The terms “political party preference” and “political beliefs” are extremely problematic. If students argue about economic tensions in Greece during a high school social studies class, will proposed HB 208 invite students to run to the principal and claim bullying?

6. The term “physical attributes” as a trait is extremely broad and could mean far more than simply referring to a student, for example, as fat, pee-wee, four-eyes, ugly, etc . In all schools, students are jealous of other students, and often hate them, because they are – among other things – attractive, athletic, tall, dress fashionably, have pretty hair, are built nicely, can run faster, can throw the ball farther, or can jump higher, etc. Jealousy and hatred because of how a student looks or because of what they can do physically – as unfortunate as these feelings are – are parts of normal school life.

7. Will proposed HB 208 also invite Student “A” to make a false claim against Student “B” because he/she believes Student “B” dislikes him/ her because Student “ A” considers himself/herself physically attractive, rather than believing the possibility that adverse feelings about him/her are for other reasons that have nothing to with physical appearance?

8. Proposed HB 208 fails to take into account what this country has seen in recent years with cases involving profound and pathological dishonesty -- i.e. Casey Anthony, Tawana Brawley, the Duke University lacrosse players, and the recent case of a Virginia male teacher named Sean Lanigan who was jailed and lost his job after a 5^th grade girl deliberately made up a vicious, sexual lie to “get back” at her teacher after she was removed from the school’s safety patrol for using inappropriate language. STUDENTS, AND SOMETIMES THEIR PARENTS, WILL MAKE UP THINGS AND LIE TO ANY EXTENT NECESSARY TO ACCOMPLISH A PARTICULAR GOAL OR TO BRING DOWN SOMEONE THEY DESPISE”. This is an absolute fact, and 19 enumerated traits and characteristics in law may invite more such lying to occur.