“Furthermore, I don’t know how you concluded that we were already discussing “being assertive” since you were the first one to mention it. Hence, a strawman.”

No, I mentioned it, although I didn’t use that word. I asked what correct behaviour was, meaning that I might think that texting someone and telling them I don’t like their behaviour and I don’t want them contacting me anymore is perfectly appropriate, but might hurt a super-special-snowflakes feelings. There is a difference between hurting someone and bullying someone. A zero tolerance law would take that line away.

In this case, ‘super-special-snowflake’ is a descriptive term, like ‘bully’ or ‘sensitive’. It’s a term for a child that has been taught that they are the center of the universe and that their thoughts and feelings matter more than anyone else’s. I don’t see how that’s more negative term than ‘bully’, which you seem perfectly alright with.

This difference of opinion makes you and I a perfect exmaple of one person thinking something is alright, and another person thinking that it’s a bullying action.

Why aren’t you being more considerate of me and my choice of words? It hurts my feelings that you called me a bully. If we were schoolmates in a zero-tolerance administration, you would be expelled, even though you didn’t actually do anything wrong, and none of this happened in school.

“So by that I suppose you would like to see the criminal assault laws scrapped?

I didn’t see where they said that at all. Can you please explain how you got there from that? We’re discussing what schools are responsible for, not what police are responsible for. I, personally, don’t see the point in making schools kick kids out because it won’t solve a bullying/harrassment problem. Using the system that we already have in place is much more likely to help stop this problem.

“To the contrary, I’ve known several parents who not only knew that their kids were bullies but were proud of it and encouraged it.”

And you want to send kids home to spend more time with those people? Or do you want it dealt with by a family court judge, who can actually asses the situation and try to remedy it, with counseling or even removal from the home if that’s what the child needs to learn how to behave toward other people.

I try to teach my children how to handle the real world. Someone sends my kid a mean message? Either they’re right and they should use it as incentive to change, or they’re wrong and they should use it as a learning tool to help deal with the ignorant people that they will encounter throughout life. Someone calls them a nigger? Either they are niggers, in which case it’s no longer derogatory, or it’s not true, which begs the question, why would you want to listen to a liar?

If someone repeatedly harrasses my child, I would turn to the police, who should work to resolve the situation. That’s thier job. I’m not going to ask the school to send the bully home. That’s a geographical cure, and it won’t help the children involved anymore than it helps alcoholics.

The point of police and court intervention is not only to help my children, but to help the other child grow up to be a good adult, and not just a bully sans a diploma. Because that’s all expulsion is going to get you.

Rose,
Here is the text of the bill being discussed. Would you please point out the zero-tolerance, mandatory expulsion part that you keep referring to?

BILL NUMBER: AB 86 ENROLLED
BILL TEXT

PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 11, 2008
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 13, 2008
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 4, 2008
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 30, 2008
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 10, 2008
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 7, 2008
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY FEBRUARY 22, 2007

INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Lieu
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Salas and Solorio)

DECEMBER 13, 2006

An act to amend Sections 32261, 32265, 32270, and 48900 of the
Education Code, relating to pupil safety.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 86, Lieu. Pupil safety.
Existing law, the Interagency School Safety Demonstration Act of
1985, states that the intent of the Legislature in enacting its
provisions is to encourage school districts, county offices of
education, law enforcement agencies, and agencies serving youth to
develop and implement interagency strategies, in-service training
programs, and activities that will, among other things, reduce school
crime and violence, including bullying. Existing law establishes the
School/Law Enforcement Partnership and charges it with undertaking
several efforts intended to reduce school crime, as specified,
including bullying.
This bill would specify that bullying, as used in these
provisions, means one or more acts by a pupil or a group of pupils
directed against another pupil that constitutes sexual harassment,
hate violence, or severe or pervasive intentional harassment,
threats, or intimidation that is disruptive, causes disorder, and
invades the rights of others by creating an intimidating or hostile
educational environment, and includes acts that are committed
personally or by means of an electronic act, as defined.
Existing law prohibits the suspension, or recommendation for
expulsion, of a pupil from school unless the principal determines
that the pupil has committed any of various specified acts,
including, but not limited to, hazing, as defined.
This bill, in addition, would give school officials grounds to
suspend a pupil or recommend a pupil for expulsion for bullying,
including, but not limited to, bullying by electronic act.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION 1. Section 32261 of the Education Code is amended to read:

32261. (a) The Legislature hereby recognizes that all pupils
enrolled in the state public schools have the inalienable right to
attend classes on school campuses that are safe, secure, and
peaceful. The Legislature also recognizes that pupils cannot fully
benefit from an educational program unless they attend school on a
regular basis. In addition, the Legislature further recognizes that
school crime, vandalism, truancy, and excessive absenteeism are
significant problems on far too many school campuses in the state.
(b) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
establishment of an interagency coordination system is the most
efficient and long-lasting means of resolving school and community
problems of truancy and crime, including vandalism, drug and alcohol
abuse, gang membership, gang violence, and hate crimes.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter
to support California public schools as they develop their mandated
comprehensive safety plans that are the result of a systematic
planning process, that include strategies aimed at the prevention of,
and education about, potential incidents involving crime and
violence on school campuses, and that address the safety concerns of
local law enforcement agencies, community leaders, parents, pupils,
teachers, administrators, school police, and other school employees
interested in the prevention of school crime and violence.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter
to encourage school districts, county offices of education, law
enforcement agencies, and agencies serving youth to develop and
implement interagency strategies, in-service training programs, and
activities that will improve school attendance and reduce school
crime and violence, including vandalism, drug and alcohol abuse, gang
membership, gang violence, hate crimes, bullying, including bullying
committed personally or by means of an electronic act, teen
relationship violence, and discrimination and harassment, including,
but not limited to, sexual harassment.
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter
that the School/Law Enforcement Partnership shall not duplicate any
existing gang or drug and alcohol abuse program currently provided
for schools.
(f) As used in this chapter, “bullying” means one or more acts by
a pupil or group of pupils as defined in Section 48900.2, 48900.3, or
48900.4.
(g) As used in this chapter, an “electronic act” means the
transmission of a communication, including, but not limited to, a
message, text, sound, or image by means of an electronic device,
including, but not limited to, a telephone, wireless telephone or
other wireless communication device, computer, or pager.
SEC. 2. Section 32265 of the Education Code is amended to read:
32265. (a) The partnership shall sponsor at least two regional
conferences for school districts, county offices of education,
agencies serving youth, allied agencies, community-based
organizations, and law enforcement agencies to identify exemplary
programs and techniques that have been effectively used to reduce
school crime, including hate crimes, vandalism, drug and alcohol
abuse, gang membership and gang violence, truancy, and excessive
absenteeism.
(b) The conference may include, but need not be limited to,
information on all of the following topics:
(1) Interagency collaboration between schools, agencies serving
youth, law enforcement agencies, and others.
(2) School attendance.
(3) School safety.
(4) Citizenship education.
(5) Drug and alcohol abuse.
(6) Child abuse prevention, detection, and reporting.
(7) Parental education.
(8) Crisis response training.
(9) Bullying prevention, including the prevention of acts
committed personally or by means of an electronic act.
(10) Threat assessment.
(11) Conflict resolution and youth mediation.
(12) Teen relationship violence.
(13) Discrimination and harassment reporting and prevention,
including, but not limited to, sexual harassment reporting and
prevention.
(14) Hate crime reporting and prevention.
(15) Reporting and prevention of abuse against pupils with
disabilities.
SEC. 3. Section 32270 of the Education Code is amended to read:
32270. (a) The partnership shall establish a statewide school
safety cadre for the purpose of facilitating interagency coordination
and collaboration among school districts, county offices of
education, agencies serving youth, allied agencies, community-based
organizations, and law enforcement agencies to improve school
attendance, encourage good citizenship, and to reduce school
violence, school crime, including hate crimes, vandalism, drug and
alcohol abuse, gang membership and gang violence, truancy rates,
bullying, including acts that are committed personally or by means of
an electronic act, teen relationship violence, and discrimination
and harassment, including, but not limited to, sexual harassment.
(b) The partnership may appoint up to 100 professionals from
educational agencies, community-based organizations, allied agencies,
and law enforcement to the statewide cadre.
(c) The partnership shall provide training to the statewide cadre
representatives to enable them to initiate and maintain school
community safety programs among school districts, county offices of
education, agencies serving youth, allied agencies, community-based
organizations, and law enforcement agencies in each region.
SEC. 4. Section 48900 of the Education Code is amended to read:
48900. A pupil shall not be suspended from school or recommended
for expulsion, unless the superintendent or the principal of the
school in which the pupil is enrolled determines that the pupil has
committed an act as defined pursuant to any of subdivisions (a) to
(r), inclusive:
(a) (1) Caused, attempted to cause, or threatened to cause
physical injury to another person.
(2) Willfully used force or violence upon the person of another,
except in self-defense.
(b) Possessed, sold, or otherwise furnished a firearm, knife,
explosive, or other dangerous object, unless, in the case of
possession of an object of this type, the pupil had obtained written
permission to possess the item from a certificated school employee,
which is concurred in by the principal or the designee of the
principal.
(c) Unlawfully possessed, used, sold, or otherwise furnished, or
been under the influence of, a controlled substance listed in Chapter
2 (commencing with Section 11053) of Division 10 of the Health and
Safety Code, an alcoholic beverage, or an intoxicant of any kind.
(d) Unlawfully offered, arranged, or negotiated to sell a
controlled substance listed in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section
11053) of Division 10 of the Health and Safety Code, an alcoholic
beverage, or an intoxicant of any kind, and either sold, delivered,
or otherwise furnished to a person another liquid, substance, or
material and represented the liquid, substance, or material as a
controlled substance, alcoholic beverage, or intoxicant.
(e) Committed or attempted to commit robbery or extortion.
(f) Caused or attempted to cause damage to school property or
private property.
(g) Stolen or attempted to steal school property or private
property.
(h) Possessed or used tobacco, or products containing tobacco or
nicotine products, including, but not limited to, cigarettes, cigars,
miniature cigars, clove cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, snuff, chew
packets, and betel. However, this section does not prohibit use or
possession by a pupil of his or her own prescription products.
(i) Committed an obscene act or engaged in habitual profanity or
vulgarity.
(j) Unlawfully possessed or unlawfully offered, arranged, or
negotiated to sell drug paraphernalia, as defined in Section 11014.5
of the Health and Safety Code.
(k) Disrupted school activities or otherwise willfully defied the
valid authority of supervisors, teachers, administrators, school
officials, or other school personnel engaged in the performance of
their duties.
() Knowingly received stolen school property or private property.
(m) Possessed an imitation firearm. As used in this section,
“imitation firearm” means a replica of a firearm that is so
substantially similar in physical properties to an existing firearm
as to lead a reasonable person to conclude that the replica is a
firearm.
(n) Committed or attempted to commit a sexual assault as defined
in Section 261, 266c, 286, 288, 288a, or 289 of the Penal Code or
committed a sexual battery as defined in Section 243.4 of the Penal
Code.
(o) Harassed, threatened, or intimidated a pupil who is a
complaining witness or a witness in a school disciplinary proceeding
for the purpose of either preventing that pupil from being a witness
or retaliating against that pupil for being a witness, or both.
(p) Unlawfully offered, arranged to sell, negotiated to sell, or
sold the prescription drug Soma.
(q) Engaged in, or attempted to engage in, hazing. For purposes of
this subdivision, “hazing” means a method of initiation or
preinitiation into a pupil organization or body, whether or not the
organization or body is officially recognized by an educational
institution, which is likely to cause serious bodily injury or
personal degradation or disgrace resulting in physical or mental harm
to a former, current, or prospective pupil. For purposes of this
subdivision, “hazing” does not include athletic events or
school-sanctioned events.
(r) Engaged in an act of bullying, including, but not limited to,
bullying committed by means of an electronic act, as defined in
subdivisions (f) and (g) of Section 32261, directed specifically
toward a pupil or school personnel.
(s) A pupil shall not be suspended or expelled for any of the acts
enumerated in this section, unless that act is related to school
activity or school attendance occurring within a school under the
jurisdiction of the superintendent of the school district or
principal or occurring within any other school district. A pupil may
be suspended or expelled for acts that are enumerated in this section
and related to school activity or attendance that occur at any time,
including, but not limited to, any of the following:
(1) While on school grounds.
(2) While going to or coming from school.
(3) During the lunch period whether on or off the campus.
(4) During, or while going to or coming from, a school sponsored
activity.
(t) A pupil who aids or abets, as defined in Section 31 of the
Penal Code, the infliction or attempted infliction of physical injury
to another person may be subject to suspension, but not expulsion,
pursuant to this section, except that a pupil who has been adjudged
by a juvenile court to have committed, as an aider and abettor, a
crime of physical violence in which the victim suffered great bodily
injury or serious bodily injury shall be subject to discipline
pursuant to subdivision (a).
(u) As used in this section, “school property” includes, but is
not limited to, electronic files and databases.
(v) A superintendent of the school district or principal may use
his or her discretion to provide alternatives to suspension or
expulsion, including, but not limited to, counseling and an anger
management program, for a pupil subject to discipline under this
section.
(w) It is the intent of the Legislature that alternatives to
suspension or expulsion be imposed against a pupil who is truant,
tardy, or otherwise absent from school activities.