Joe Quigley's News From NW Classen HS: Thurs, Feb 15

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		Joe Quigley's News From NW Classen HS: Fri, Feb 16x

The following is an e-mail from Joe Quigley.
(Posted 2-17-01)

A NW Classen surprise

this one caught me quite by surprise.

     Last fall nearly two years after the initial sexual harassment complaint the district (Oklahoma City Public Schools) reached a resolution with the Office of Civil Rights and agreed to do the following (among other things):

By the end of November 2000 the district was to have:
1) provided all employees, students and parents with the phone number of the person responsible for Title IX compliance. This was to be done by posters, print media outlets, written notices to parents, and assemblies.
2) Provide these same people with the definition of sexual harassment and how to handle and process relevant complaints.
3) Amend the notice of nondiscrimination statement where it is usually published, and pending publication disseminate it to the above mentioned people. (incidentally, the revised notification does not include "sexual orientation". this would have been the proper time to add it.)
By December it was to have:
1) formally developed, implemented and published the grievance procedures that provides for addressing sexual harassment complaints, and provide employees, students and parents with copies of it.

None of this has reached NWClassen, and if it had it was never dealt with.
   Before the Christmas break a box sat in the main office containing a small pamphlet that might have been what we were all supposed to receive, but it has long since disappeared, and a recent hunt for it turned up nothing. I had taken a copy when they first arrived to see if "sexual orientation" had been added, and because it wasn't I called the OCR too see if the settlement covered G/L/B/T Students.
That was when I was assured that wherever the word "Student" was used, these students were covered.
    So no part of the settlement has been addressed to the employees, students or parents working at or attending NWClassen.

     I found out that at a faculty meeting to be held 2/13/01 the principal intended to explain the sexual harassment policy. I wrote a memo to the Principal in which I mentioned my assurance from the the Office of Civil Rights, and suggested that since we were in a place where most people would not go beyond the idea of boy/girl, girl/boy it might be a good idea to mention this inclusion.
    To his credit, although it was slipped into his presentation rather fast, he did use the words "same sex" and it was heard by quite a few people. However, the explanation was a requirement, bothersome at best, and the policy and accompanying definitions of the two major types of harassment were mumbled through and the presentation rushed.

     As a follow up to this, knowing there was supposed to be some form of displayed policy, but after having joined in the hunt for the missing pamphlets and finding nothing, I hung a notice in my room, approximately 8x10, that said,
"Gay or Straight, no one has to put up with sexual harassment.....report it."
    To me this stated the intent of the policy and included those who are traditionally left out, and whose inclusion was not left up to the individual assumptions of Teachers, students, victims, or perpetrators.
     What student, or adult for that matter, is going to really go through a long policy with phrases like "quid pro quo"? Simple, fast and to the point seemed better.
    On 2/16/01 I was directed to remove this notice because it was not the official wording.
     We were supposed to not only have received the official policy, but to have had assemblies to expalin it. That was November. this is February.
Nothing has been received and nothing done. BUT, a little 8x10 notice had to come down.
     My questions, then, are these.

1) Is the principal reluctant to let Gay and Lesbian Students know they are protected, or does he not want any student to know?
2) Would he not want to prevent sexual harassment, rather than wait for events and subsequent charges?
3) Wouldn't it be better to let all kids, potential victims and potential perpetrators, as well as those who are agents of the district know what is wrong, rather than allow them to act out of ignorance.

Not only hasn't the OCR resolution been met, but NWClassen and the District are ripe for a case. But, if one happens there will be much wringing of hands with the predictable questioning of how this could happen. The District will not know, nor will it probably accept that the district created and allowed to be created at NWClassen the conditions that tacitly condoned sexual harassment. The district will act shocked and injured, and will either attempt to claim ignorance, or try to say it did what it could.
I have the documentation and the treatment to say the latter is not so.

The next e-mail will explain the fear the principal has that students may want to bring their same sex dates to the prom, or same sex siblings that will give the appearance of "homosexuality".
but this has been long enough
joe quigley

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