S. 6063 2
the tools to identify, prevent, and prohibit bullying against all
students, both conventional and cyber-bullying.
S 2. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Law
to Encourage the Acceptance of All Differences (LEAD)".
S 3. Section 801-a of the education law, as amended by chapter 102 of
the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
S 801-a. Instruction in civility, citizenship and character education.
The regents shall ensure that the course of instruction in grades
kindergarten through twelve includes a component on civility, citizen-
ship and character education. Such component shall instruct students on
the principles of honesty, tolerance, personal responsibility, respect
for others, with an emphasis on discouraging acts of [harassment,]
bullying AS DEFINED IN SECTION ELEVEN OF THIS CHAPTER, discrimination,
observance of laws and rules, courtesy, dignity and other traits which
will enhance the quality of their experiences in, and contributions to,
the community. Such component shall include instruction of safe, respon-
sible use of the internet and electronic communications. The regents
shall determine how to incorporate such component in existing curricula
and the commissioner shall promulgate any regulations needed to carry
out such determination of the regents. For the purposes of this section,
"tolerance," "respect for others" and "dignity" shall include awareness
and sensitivity [to harassment, bullying, discrimination and civility in
the relations of] TOWARD ALL STUDENTS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
people of different races, weights, national origins, ethnic groups,
religions, religious practices, mental or physical abilities, sexual
orientations, genders, and sexes.
S 4. Paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 2801 of the education
law, as added by chapter 181 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as
follows:
d. disciplinary measures to be taken in incidents involving the
possession or use of illegal substances or weapons, the use of physical
force, BULLYING, vandalism, violation of another student's civil rights
and threats of violence;
S 5. Subdivision 2 of section 2801 of the education law is amended by
adding a new paragraph f-1 to read as follows:
F-1. PROCEDURES BY WHICH ANY SCHOOL EMPLOYEE, HAVING REASONABLE CAUSE
TO SUSPECT THAT A STUDENT HAS BEEN THE VICTIM OF BULLYING OR HAS COMMIT-
TED AN ACT OF BULLYING AS DEFINED IN SECTION ELEVEN OF THIS CHAPTER,
SHALL BE REQUIRED TO REPORT SUCH INCIDENT TO THE PRINCIPAL OR DESIGNEE
THEREOF. IF THE PRINCIPAL OR HIS OR HER DESIGNEE DETERMINES THAT THERE
IS A REASONABLE CAUSE TO BELIEVE THAT THE INCIDENT OCCURRED, HE OR SHE
SHALL REPORT SUCH INCIDENT TO THE SUPERINTENDENT. ANY EMPLOYEE WHO
REASONABLY AND IN GOOD FAITH MAKES A REPORT OF AN ACT OF BULLYING TO THE
PRINCIPAL OR DESIGNEE THEREOF SHALL HAVE IMMUNITY FROM CIVIL LIABILITY
WHICH MIGHT OTHERWISE RESULT BY REASON OF SUCH ACTIONS;
S 6. Section 11 of the education law, as added by chapter 482 of the
laws of 2010, subdivision 7 as amended and subdivision 8 as added by
chapter 102 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
S 11. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following
terms shall have the following meanings:
1. "School property" shall [mean in or within any building, structure,
athletic playing field, playground, parking lot, or land contained with-
in the real property boundary line of a public elementary or secondary
school; or in or on a school bus, as defined in section one hundred
forty-two of the vehicle and traffic law.
S. 6063 3
2. "School function" shall mean a school-sponsored extra-curricular
event or activity] HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS SET FORTH IN SECTION TWEN-
TY-EIGHT HUNDRED ONE OF THIS CHAPTER.
[3.] 2. "Disability" shall mean disability as defined in subdivision
twenty-one of section two hundred ninety-two of the executive law.
[4. "Employee" shall mean employee as defined in subdivision three of
section eleven hundred twenty-five of this title.
5.] 3. "Sexual orientation" shall mean actual or perceived heterosexu-
ality, homosexuality or bisexuality.
[6.] 4. "Gender" shall mean actual or perceived sex and shall include
a person's gender identity or expression.
[7. "Harassment" and "bullying" shall mean the creation] 5. "CREATION
of a hostile environment [by]" SHALL MEAN ENGAGING IN conduct or [by]
threats, intimidation or abuse, including cyberbullying, that (a) has or
would have the effect of unreasonably and substantially interfering with
a student's educational performance, opportunities or benefits, or
mental, emotional or physical well-being; or (b) reasonably causes or
would reasonably be expected to cause a student to fear for his or her
physical safety; or (c) reasonably causes or would reasonably be
expected to cause physical injury or emotional harm to a student; or (d)
occurs off school property and creates or would foreseeably create a
risk of substantial disruption within the school environment, where it
is foreseeable that the conduct, threats, intimidation or abuse might
reach school property. [Acts of harassment and bullying shall include,
but not be limited to, those acts based on a person's actual or
perceived race, color, weight, national origin, ethnic group, religion,
religious practice, disability, sexual orientation, gender or sex.] For
the purposes of this definition the term "threats, intimidation or
abuse" shall include verbal and non-verbal actions.
6. "BULLYING" SHALL MEAN THE SEVERE OR REPEATED USE BY ONE OR MORE
STUDENTS OR SCHOOL EMPLOYEES OF A WRITTEN, VERBAL OR ELECTRONIC
EXPRESSION, OR A PHYSICAL ACT OR GESTURE, OR ANY COMBINATION THEREOF,
DIRECTED AT A STUDENT THAT HAS THE EFFECT OF CREATING A HOSTILE ENVIRON-
MENT. ACTS OF BULLYING SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, THOSE ACTS
WHICH ARE MOTIVATED BY A STUDENT'S ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED RACE, COLOR,
WEIGHT, NATIONAL ORIGIN, ETHNIC GROUP, RELIGION, RELIGIOUS PRACTICE,
DISABILITY, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER, OR SEX.
[8.] 7. "Cyberbullying" shall mean [harassment or] bullying as defined
in subdivision [seven] SIX of this section[, including paragraphs (a),
(b), (c) and (d) of such subdivision,] where such [harassment or] bully-
ing occurs through any form of electronic communication.
S 7. Section 12 of the education law, as added by chapter 482 of the
laws of 2010, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 102 of the laws of
2012, is amended to read as follows:
S 12. [Discrimination and harassment] BULLYING AND DISCRIMINATION
prohibited. 1. No student shall be subjected to [harassment or] bully-
ing by employees or students on school property [or at a school func-
tion; nor shall any].
A. NO STUDENT OR SCHOOL EMPLOYEE SHALL SUBJECT ANY STUDENT OF A PUBLIC
SCHOOL OR PUBLICLY FUNDED SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAM TO BULLYING AS
DEFINED IN THIS ARTICLE.
B. ANY STUDENT OR SCHOOL EMPLOYEE FOUND TO BE IN VIOLATION OF SUBDIVI-
SION TWO OF THIS SECTION IN A PUBLIC SCHOOL OR ON SCHOOL PROPERTY SHALL
BE SUBJECT TO DISCIPLINARY ACTION IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE DISTRICT'S CODE
OF CONDUCT ADOPTED PURSUANT TO SECTION TWENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED ONE OF THIS
ARTICLE AND THE APPLICABLE DISCIPLINE PROCEDURES. ANY STUDENT OR SCHOOL
S. 6063 4
EMPLOYEE FOUND TO BE IN VIOLATION OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION IN
A PUBLICLY FUNDED SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAM SHALL BE SUBJECT TO DISCI-
PLINE UNDER THE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES OF SUCH PROGRAM GOVERNING
CONDUCT.
C. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL APPLY, OR BE CONSTRUED TO APPLY, TO
PRIVATE, RELIGIOUS OR DENOMINATIONAL EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. NOR SHALL
THIS SECTION PRECLUDE OR LIMIT, OR BE PERCEIVED TO PRECLUDE OR LIMIT,
ANY RIGHT OR CAUSE OF ACTION PROVIDED UNDER ANY LOCAL, STATE OR FEDERAL
ORDINANCE, LAW, RULE OR REGULATION.
2. NO student SHALL be subjected to discrimination based on a person's
actual or perceived race, color, weight, national origin, ethnic group,
religion, religious practice, disability, sexual orientation, gender, or
sex by school employees or students on school property or at a school
function. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prohibit a
denial of admission into, or exclusion from, a course of instruction
based on a person's gender that would be permissible under section thir-
ty-two hundred one-a or paragraph (a) of subdivision two of section
twenty-eight hundred fifty-four of this chapter and title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. section 1681, et. seq.), or to
prohibit, as discrimination based on disability, actions that would be
permissible under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
[2. An age-appropriate version of the policy outlined in subdivision
one of this section, written in plain-language, shall be included in the
code of conduct adopted by boards of education and the trustees or sole
trustee pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred one of this chapter and
a summary of such policy shall be included in any summaries required by
such section twenty-eight hundred one.]
S 8. Section 13 of the education law, as amended by chapter 102 of the
laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
S 13. Policies and guidelines. The board of education and the trustees
or sole trustee of every school district shall create policies, proce-
dures and guidelines that shall include, but not be limited to:
1. Policies and procedures intended to create a school environment
that is free from [harassment,] bullying and discrimination, that
include but are not limited to provisions which:
a. identify the principal, superintendent or the principal's or super-
intendent's designee as the school employee charged with receiving
reports of [harassment,] bullying and discrimination;
b. enable students and parents to make an oral or written report of
[harassment,] bullying or discrimination to teachers, administrators and
other school personnel that the school district deems appropriate;
c. require school employees who witness [harassment,] bullying or
discrimination, or receive an oral or written report of [harassment,]
bullying or discrimination, to promptly orally notify the principal,
superintendent or the principal's or superintendent's designee not later
than one school day after such school employee witnesses or receives a
report of [harassment,] bullying or discrimination, and to file a writ-
ten report with the principal, superintendent or the principal or super-
intendent's designee not later than two school days after making such
oral report;
d. require the principal, superintendent or the principal's or super-
intendent's designee to lead or supervise the thorough investigation of
all reports of [harassment,] bullying and discrimination, and to ensure
that such investigation is completed promptly after receipt of any writ-
ten reports made under this section;
S. 6063 5
e. require the school, when an investigation reveals any such verified
[harassment,] bullying or discrimination, to take prompt actions reason-
ably calculated to end the [harassment,] bullying or discrimination,
eliminate any hostile environment, create a more positive school culture
and climate, prevent recurrence of the behavior, and ensure the safety
of the student or students against whom such [harassment,] bullying or
discrimination was directed. Such actions shall be consistent with the
guidelines created pursuant to subdivision four of this section;
f. prohibit retaliation against any individual who, in good faith,
reports, or assists in the investigation of, [harassment,] bullying or
discrimination;
g. include a school strategy to prevent [harassment,] bullying and
discrimination;
h. require the principal to make a regular report on data and trends
related to [harassment,] bullying and discrimination to the superinten-
dent;
i. require the principal, superintendent or the principal's or super-
intendent's designee, to notify promptly the appropriate local law
enforcement agency when such principal, superintendent or the princi-
pal's or superintendent's designee, believes that any [harassment,]
bullying or discrimination constitutes criminal conduct;
j. include appropriate references to the provisions of the school
district's code of conduct adopted pursuant to section twenty-eight
hundred one of this chapter that are relevant to [harassment,] bullying
and discrimination;
k. require each school, at least once during each school year, to
provide all school employees, students and parents with a written or
electronic copy of the school district's policies created pursuant to
this section, or a plain-language summary thereof, including notifica-
tion of the process by which students, parents and school employees may
report [harassment,] bullying and discrimination. This subdivision shall
not be construed to require additional distribution of such policies and
guidelines if they are otherwise distributed to school employees,
students and parents;
l. maintain current versions of the school district's policies created
pursuant to this section on the school district's internet website, if
one exists;
2. Guidelines to be used in school training programs to discourage the
development of [harassment,] bullying and discrimination, and to make
school employees aware of the effects of [harassment,] bullying, cyber-
bullying and discrimination on students and that are designed:
a. to raise the awareness and sensitivity of school employees to
potential [harassment,] bullying and discrimination, and
b. to enable employees to prevent and respond to [harassment,] bully-
ing and discrimination; and
3. Guidelines relating to the development of nondiscriminatory
instructional and counseling methods, and requiring that at least one
staff member at every school be thoroughly trained to handle human
relations in the areas of race, color, weight, national origin, ethnic
group, religion, religious practice, disability, sexual orientation,
gender, and sex; and
4. Guidelines relating to the development of measured, balanced and
age-appropriate responses to instances of [harassment,] bullying or
discrimination by students, with remedies and procedures following a
progressive model that make appropriate use of intervention, discipline
and education, vary in method according to the nature of the behavior,
S. 6063 6
the developmental age of the student and the student's history of prob-
lem behaviors, and are consistent with the district's code of conduct;
and
5. Training required by this section shall address the social patterns
of [harassment,] bullying and discrimination, as defined in section
eleven of this article, including but not limited to those acts based on
a person's actual or perceived race, color, weight, national origin,
ethnic group, religion, religious practice, disability, sexual orien-
tation, gender or sex, the identification and mitigation of [harass-
ment,] bullying and discrimination, and strategies for effectively
addressing problems of exclusion, bias and aggression in educational
settings.
S 9. Section 14 of the education law, as amended by chapter 102 of the
laws of 2012, subdivision 5 as amended by chapter 90 of the laws of
2013, is amended to read as follows:
S 14. Commissioner's responsibilities. The commissioner shall:
1. Provide direction, which may include development of model policies
and, to the extent possible, direct services, to school districts
related to preventing [harassment,] bullying and discrimination and to
fostering an environment in every school where all children can learn
free of manifestations of bias;
2. Provide grants, from funds appropriated for such purpose, to local
school districts to assist them in implementing the guidelines set forth
in this section;
3. Promulgate regulations to assist school districts in implementing
this article including, but not limited to, regulations to assist school
districts in developing measured, balanced, and age-appropriate
responses to violations of this policy, with remedies and procedures
following a progressive model that make appropriate use of intervention,
discipline and education and provide guidance related to the application
of regulations; and
4. Provide guidance and educational materials to school districts
related to best practices in addressing cyberbullying and helping fami-
lies and communities work cooperatively with schools in addressing
cyberbullying, whether on or off school property or at or away from a
school function.
5. The commissioner shall prescribe regulations that school profes-
sionals applying on or after December thirty-first, two thousand thir-
teen for a certificate or license, including but not limited to a
certificate or license valid for service as a classroom teacher, school
counselor, school psychologist, school social worker, school administra-
tor or supervisor or superintendent of schools shall, in addition to all
other certification or licensing requirements, have completed training
on the social patterns of [harassment,] bullying and discrimination, as
defined in section eleven of this article, including but not limited to
those acts based on a person's actual or perceived race, color, weight,
national origin, ethnic group, religion, religious practice, disability,
sexual orientation, gender or sex, the identification and mitigation of
[harassment,] bullying and discrimination, and strategies for effec-
tively addressing problems of exclusion, bias and aggression in educa-
tional settings.
S 10. Section 15 of the education law, as amended by chapter 102 of
the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
S 15. Reporting by commissioner. The commissioner shall create a
procedure under which material incidents of [harassment,] bullying and
discrimination on school [grounds or at a school function] PROPERTY, AS
S. 6063 7
SUCH TERM IS DEFINED IN SECTION TWENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED ONE OF THIS CHAP-
TER, are reported to the department at least on an annual basis. Such
procedure shall provide that such reports shall, wherever possible, also
delineate the specific nature of such incidents of [harassment,] bully-
ing and discrimination, provided that the commissioner may comply with
the requirements of this section through use of the existing uniform
violent incident reporting system. In addition the department may
conduct research or undertake studies to determine compliance throughout
the state with the provisions of this article.
S 11. Section 16 of the education law, as amended by chapter 102 of
the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
S 16. Protection of people who report [harassment,] bullying or
discrimination. Any person having reasonable cause to suspect that a
student has been subjected to [harassment,] bullying or discrimination,
by an employee or student, on school [grounds or at a school function]
PROPERTY, AS SUCH TERM IS DEFINED IN SECTION TWENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED ONE OF
THIS CHAPTER, who, acting reasonably and in good faith, reports such
information to school officials, to the commissioner or to law enforce-
ment authorities, acts in compliance with paragraph e or i of subdivi-
sion one of section thirteen of this article, or otherwise initiates,
testifies, participates or assists in any formal or informal proceedings
under this article, shall have immunity from any civil liability that
may arise from the making of such report or from initiating, testifying,
participating or assisting in such formal or informal proceedings, and
no school district or employee shall take, request or cause a retaliato-
ry action against any such person who, acting reasonably and in good
faith, either makes such a report or initiates, testifies, participates
or assists in such formal or informal proceedings.
S 12. This act shall take effect immediately.
