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1 | AN ACT concerning education.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section | |||||||||||||||||||
5 | 27-23.7 as follows: | |||||||||||||||||||
6 | (105 ILCS 5/27-23.7) | |||||||||||||||||||
7 | Sec. 27-23.7. Bullying prevention. | |||||||||||||||||||
8 | (a) The General Assembly finds that a safe and civil | |||||||||||||||||||
9 | school environment is necessary for students to learn and | |||||||||||||||||||
10 | achieve and that bullying causes physical, psychological, and | |||||||||||||||||||
11 | emotional harm to students and interferes with students' | |||||||||||||||||||
12 | ability to learn and participate in school activities. The | |||||||||||||||||||
13 | General Assembly further finds that bullying has been linked | |||||||||||||||||||
14 | to other forms of antisocial behavior, such as vandalism, | |||||||||||||||||||
15 | shoplifting, skipping and dropping out of school, fighting, | |||||||||||||||||||
16 | using drugs and alcohol, sexual harassment, and sexual | |||||||||||||||||||
17 | violence. Because of the negative outcomes associated with | |||||||||||||||||||
18 | bullying in schools, the General Assembly finds that school | |||||||||||||||||||
19 | districts, charter schools, and non-public , non-sectarian | |||||||||||||||||||
20 | elementary and secondary schools should educate students, | |||||||||||||||||||
21 | parents, and school district, charter school, or non-public , | |||||||||||||||||||
22 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school personnel about | |||||||||||||||||||
23 | what behaviors constitute prohibited bullying. |
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1 | Bullying on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, | ||||||
2 | religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, physical appearance, | ||||||
3 | socioeconomic status, academic status, pregnancy, parenting | ||||||
4 | status, homelessness, age, marital status, physical or mental | ||||||
5 | disability, military status, sexual orientation, | ||||||
6 | gender-related identity or expression, unfavorable discharge | ||||||
7 | from military service, association with a person or group with | ||||||
8 | one or more of the aforementioned actual or perceived | ||||||
9 | characteristics, or any other distinguishing characteristic is | ||||||
10 | prohibited in all school districts, charter schools, and | ||||||
11 | non-public , non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools.
No | ||||||
12 | student shall be subjected to bullying: | ||||||
13 | (1) during any school-sponsored education program or | ||||||
14 | activity; | ||||||
15 | (2) while in school, on school property, on school | ||||||
16 | buses or other school vehicles, at designated school bus | ||||||
17 | stops waiting for the school bus, or at school-sponsored | ||||||
18 | or school-sanctioned events or activities; | ||||||
19 | (3) through the transmission of information from a | ||||||
20 | school computer, a school computer network, or other | ||||||
21 | similar electronic school equipment; or | ||||||
22 | (4) through the transmission of information from a | ||||||
23 | computer that is accessed at a nonschool-related location, | ||||||
24 | activity, function, or program or from the use of | ||||||
25 | technology or an electronic device that is not owned, | ||||||
26 | leased, or used by a school district or school if the |
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1 | bullying causes a substantial disruption to the | ||||||
2 | educational process or orderly operation of a school. This | ||||||
3 | item (4) applies only in cases in which a school | ||||||
4 | administrator or teacher receives a report that bullying | ||||||
5 | through this means has occurred and does not require a | ||||||
6 | district or school to staff or monitor any | ||||||
7 | nonschool-related activity, function, or program. | ||||||
8 | (a-5) Nothing in this Section is intended to infringe upon | ||||||
9 | any right to exercise free expression or the free exercise of | ||||||
10 | religion or religiously based views protected under the First | ||||||
11 | Amendment to the United States Constitution or under Section 3 | ||||||
12 | of Article I of the Illinois Constitution. | ||||||
13 | (b) In this Section:
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14 | "Bullying" includes "cyber-bullying" and means any severe | ||||||
15 | or pervasive physical or verbal act or conduct, including | ||||||
16 | communications made in writing or electronically, directed | ||||||
17 | toward a student or students that has or can be reasonably | ||||||
18 | predicted to have the effect of one or more of the following: | ||||||
19 | (1) placing the student or students in reasonable fear | ||||||
20 | of harm to the student's or students' person or property; | ||||||
21 | (2) causing a substantially detrimental effect on the | ||||||
22 | student's or students' physical or mental health; | ||||||
23 | (3) substantially interfering with the student's or | ||||||
24 | students' academic performance; or | ||||||
25 | (4) substantially interfering with the student's or | ||||||
26 | students' ability to participate in or benefit from the |
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1 | services, activities, or privileges provided by a school. | ||||||
2 | Bullying, as defined in this subsection (b), may take | ||||||
3 | various forms, including without limitation one or more of the | ||||||
4 | following: harassment, threats, intimidation, stalking, | ||||||
5 | physical violence, sexual harassment, sexual violence, theft, | ||||||
6 | public humiliation, destruction of property, or retaliation | ||||||
7 | for asserting or alleging an act of bullying. This list is | ||||||
8 | meant to be illustrative and non-exhaustive. | ||||||
9 | "Cyber-bullying" means bullying through the use of | ||||||
10 | technology or any electronic communication, including without | ||||||
11 | limitation any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, | ||||||
12 | sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in | ||||||
13 | whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic system, | ||||||
14 | photoelectronic system, or photooptical system, including | ||||||
15 | without limitation electronic mail, Internet communications, | ||||||
16 | instant messages, or facsimile communications. | ||||||
17 | "Cyber-bullying" includes the creation of a webpage or weblog | ||||||
18 | in which the creator assumes the identity of another person or | ||||||
19 | the knowing impersonation of another person as the author of | ||||||
20 | posted content or messages if the creation or impersonation | ||||||
21 | creates any of the effects enumerated in the definition of | ||||||
22 | bullying in this Section. "Cyber-bullying" also includes the | ||||||
23 | distribution by electronic means of a communication to more | ||||||
24 | than one person or the posting of material on an electronic | ||||||
25 | medium that may be accessed by one or more persons if the | ||||||
26 | distribution or posting creates any of the effects enumerated |
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1 | in the definition of bullying in this Section. | ||||||
2 | "Non-public school" means a non-public elementary or | ||||||
3 | secondary school, whether sectarian or nonsectarian. | ||||||
4 | "Policy on bullying" means a bullying prevention policy | ||||||
5 | that meets the following criteria: | ||||||
6 | (1) Includes the bullying definition provided in this | ||||||
7 | Section. | ||||||
8 | (2) Includes a statement that bullying is contrary to | ||||||
9 | State law and the policy of the school district, charter | ||||||
10 | school, or non-public , non-sectarian elementary or | ||||||
11 | secondary school and is consistent with subsection (a-5) | ||||||
12 | of this Section. | ||||||
13 | (3) Includes procedures for promptly reporting | ||||||
14 | bullying, including, but not limited to, identifying and | ||||||
15 | providing the school e-mail address (if applicable) and | ||||||
16 | school telephone number for the staff person or persons | ||||||
17 | responsible for receiving such reports and a procedure for | ||||||
18 | anonymous reporting; however, this shall not be construed | ||||||
19 | to permit formal disciplinary action solely on the basis | ||||||
20 | of an anonymous report. | ||||||
21 | (4) Consistent with federal and State laws and rules | ||||||
22 | governing student privacy rights, includes procedures for | ||||||
23 | informing parents or guardians of all students involved in | ||||||
24 | the alleged incident of bullying within 24 hours after the | ||||||
25 | school's administration is made aware of the students' | ||||||
26 | involvement in the incident and discussing, as |
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1 | appropriate, the availability of social work services, | ||||||
2 | counseling, school psychological services, other | ||||||
3 | interventions, and restorative measures. The school shall | ||||||
4 | make diligent efforts to notify a parent or legal | ||||||
5 | guardian, utilizing all contact information the school has | ||||||
6 | available or that can be reasonably obtained by the school | ||||||
7 | within the 24-hour period. | ||||||
8 | (5) Contains procedures for promptly investigating and | ||||||
9 | addressing reports of bullying, including the following: | ||||||
10 | (A) Making all reasonable efforts to complete the | ||||||
11 | investigation within 10 school days after the date the | ||||||
12 | report of the incident of bullying was received and | ||||||
13 | taking into consideration additional relevant | ||||||
14 | information received during the course of the | ||||||
15 | investigation about the reported incident of bullying. | ||||||
16 | (B) Involving appropriate school support personnel | ||||||
17 | and other staff persons with knowledge, experience, | ||||||
18 | and training on bullying prevention, as deemed | ||||||
19 | appropriate, in the investigation process. | ||||||
20 | (C) Notifying the principal or school | ||||||
21 | administrator or his or her designee of the report of | ||||||
22 | the incident of bullying as soon as possible after the | ||||||
23 | report is received. | ||||||
24 | (D) Consistent with federal and State laws and | ||||||
25 | rules governing student privacy rights, providing | ||||||
26 | parents and guardians of the students who are parties |
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1 | to the investigation information about the | ||||||
2 | investigation and an opportunity to meet with the | ||||||
3 | principal or school administrator or his or her | ||||||
4 | designee to discuss the investigation, the findings of | ||||||
5 | the investigation, and the actions taken to address | ||||||
6 | the reported incident of bullying. | ||||||
7 | (6) Includes the interventions that can be taken to | ||||||
8 | address bullying, which may include, but are not limited | ||||||
9 | to, school social work services, restorative measures, | ||||||
10 | social-emotional skill building, counseling, school | ||||||
11 | psychological services, and community-based services. | ||||||
12 | (7) Includes a statement prohibiting reprisal or | ||||||
13 | retaliation against any person who reports an act of | ||||||
14 | bullying and the consequences and appropriate remedial | ||||||
15 | actions for a person who engages in reprisal or | ||||||
16 | retaliation. | ||||||
17 | (8) Includes consequences and appropriate remedial | ||||||
18 | actions for a person found to have falsely accused another | ||||||
19 | of bullying as a means of retaliation or as a means of | ||||||
20 | bullying. | ||||||
21 | (9) Is based on the engagement of a range of school | ||||||
22 | stakeholders, including students and parents or guardians. | ||||||
23 | (10) Is posted on the school district's, charter
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24 | school's, or non-public , non-sectarian elementary or
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25 | secondary school's existing, publicly accessible Internet | ||||||
26 | website, is
included in the student handbook, and, where |
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1 | applicable,
posted where other policies, rules, and | ||||||
2 | standards of
conduct are currently posted in the school | ||||||
3 | and provided periodically throughout the school year to | ||||||
4 | students and faculty, and is
distributed annually to | ||||||
5 | parents, guardians, students, and
school personnel, | ||||||
6 | including new employees when hired. | ||||||
7 | (11) As part of the process of reviewing and | ||||||
8 | re-evaluating the policy under subsection (d) of this | ||||||
9 | Section, contains a policy evaluation process to assess | ||||||
10 | the outcomes and effectiveness of the policy that | ||||||
11 | includes, but is not limited to, factors such as the | ||||||
12 | frequency of victimization; student, staff, and family | ||||||
13 | observations of safety at a school; identification of | ||||||
14 | areas of a school where bullying occurs; the types of | ||||||
15 | bullying utilized; and bystander intervention or | ||||||
16 | participation. The school district, charter school, or | ||||||
17 | non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary school | ||||||
18 | may use relevant data and information it already collects | ||||||
19 | for other purposes in the policy evaluation. The | ||||||
20 | information developed as a result of the policy evaluation | ||||||
21 | must be made available on the Internet website of the | ||||||
22 | school district, charter school, or non-public , | ||||||
23 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school. If an | ||||||
24 | Internet website is not available, the information must be | ||||||
25 | provided to school administrators, school board members, | ||||||
26 | school personnel, parents, guardians, and students. |
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1 | (12) Is consistent with the policies of the school | ||||||
2 | board, charter school, or non-public , non-sectarian | ||||||
3 | elementary or secondary school. | ||||||
4 | (13) Requires all individual instances of bullying, as | ||||||
5 | well as all threats, suggestions, or instances of | ||||||
6 | self-harm determined to be the result of bullying, to be | ||||||
7 | reported to the parents or legal guardians of those | ||||||
8 | involved under the guidelines provided in paragraph (4) of | ||||||
9 | this definition. | ||||||
10 | "Restorative measures" means a continuum of school-based | ||||||
11 | alternatives to exclusionary discipline, such as suspensions | ||||||
12 | and expulsions, that: (i) are adapted to the particular needs | ||||||
13 | of the school and community, (ii) contribute to maintaining | ||||||
14 | school safety, (iii) protect the integrity of a positive and | ||||||
15 | productive learning climate, (iv) teach students the personal | ||||||
16 | and interpersonal skills they will need to be successful in | ||||||
17 | school and society, (v) serve to build and restore | ||||||
18 | relationships among students, families, schools, and | ||||||
19 | communities, (vi) reduce the likelihood of future disruption | ||||||
20 | by balancing accountability with an understanding of students' | ||||||
21 | behavioral health needs in order to keep students in school, | ||||||
22 | and (vii) increase student accountability if the incident of | ||||||
23 | bullying is based on religion, race, ethnicity, or any other | ||||||
24 | category that is identified in the Illinois Human Rights Act. | ||||||
25 | "School personnel" means persons employed by, on contract | ||||||
26 | with, or who volunteer in a school district, charter school, |
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1 | or non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary school, | ||||||
2 | including without limitation school and school district | ||||||
3 | administrators, teachers, school social workers, school | ||||||
4 | counselors, school psychologists, school nurses, cafeteria | ||||||
5 | workers, custodians, bus drivers, school resource officers, | ||||||
6 | and security guards. | ||||||
7 | (c) (Blank).
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8 | (d) Each school district, charter school, and non-public , | ||||||
9 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school shall create, | ||||||
10 | maintain, and implement a policy on bullying, which policy | ||||||
11 | must be filed with the State Board of Education. The policy on | ||||||
12 | bullying shall be based on the State Board of Education's | ||||||
13 | template for a model bullying prevention policy under | ||||||
14 | subsection (h) and shall include the criteria set forth in the | ||||||
15 | definition of "policy on bullying". The policy or implementing | ||||||
16 | procedure shall include a process to investigate whether a | ||||||
17 | reported act of bullying is within the permissible scope of | ||||||
18 | the district's or school's jurisdiction and shall require that | ||||||
19 | the district or school provide the victim with information | ||||||
20 | regarding services that are available within the district and | ||||||
21 | community, such as counseling, support services, and other | ||||||
22 | programs. School personnel available for help with a bully or | ||||||
23 | to make a report about bullying shall be made known to parents | ||||||
24 | or legal guardians, students, and school personnel. Every 2 | ||||||
25 | years, each school district, charter school, and non-public , | ||||||
26 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school shall conduct a |
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1 | review and re-evaluation of its policy and make any necessary | ||||||
2 | and appropriate revisions. No later than September 30 of the | ||||||
3 | subject year, the policy must be filed with the State Board of | ||||||
4 | Education after being updated. The State Board of Education | ||||||
5 | shall monitor and provide technical support for the | ||||||
6 | implementation of policies created under this subsection (d). | ||||||
7 | In monitoring the implementation of the policies, the State | ||||||
8 | Board of Education shall review each filed policy on bullying | ||||||
9 | to ensure all policies meet the requirements set forth in this | ||||||
10 | Section, including ensuring that each policy meets the 12 | ||||||
11 | criterion identified within the definition of "policy on | ||||||
12 | bullying" set forth in this Section. | ||||||
13 | If a school district, charter school, or non-public , | ||||||
14 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school fails to file a | ||||||
15 | policy on bullying by September 30 of the subject year, the | ||||||
16 | State Board of Education shall provide a written request for | ||||||
17 | filing to the school district, charter school, or non-public , | ||||||
18 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school. If a school | ||||||
19 | district, charter school, or non-public , non-sectarian | ||||||
20 | elementary or secondary school fails to file a policy on | ||||||
21 | bullying within 14 days of receipt of the aforementioned | ||||||
22 | written request, the State Board of Education shall publish | ||||||
23 | notice of the non-compliance on the State Board of Education's | ||||||
24 | website. | ||||||
25 | Each school district, charter school, and non-public , | ||||||
26 | non-sectarian elementary or secondary school may provide |
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1 | evidence-based professional development and youth programming | ||||||
2 | on bullying prevention that is consistent with the provisions | ||||||
3 | of this Section. | ||||||
4 | (e) This Section shall not be interpreted to prevent a | ||||||
5 | victim from seeking redress under any other available civil or | ||||||
6 | criminal law.
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7 | (f) School districts, charter schools, and non-public , | ||||||
8 | non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools shall collect, | ||||||
9 | maintain, and submit to the State Board of Education | ||||||
10 | non-identifiable data regarding verified allegations of | ||||||
11 | bullying within the school district, charter school, or | ||||||
12 | non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary school. | ||||||
13 | School districts, charter schools, and non-public , | ||||||
14 | non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools must submit | ||||||
15 | such data in an annual report due to the State Board of | ||||||
16 | Education no later than August 15 of each year starting with | ||||||
17 | the 2024-2025 school year through the 2030-2031 school year. | ||||||
18 | The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the | ||||||
19 | submission of data that includes, but is not limited to: (i) a | ||||||
20 | record of each verified allegation of bullying and action | ||||||
21 | taken; and (ii) whether the instance of bullying was based on | ||||||
22 | actual or perceived characteristics identified in subsection | ||||||
23 | (a) and, if so, lists the relevant characteristics. The rules | ||||||
24 | for the submission of data shall be consistent with federal | ||||||
25 | and State laws and rules governing student privacy rights, | ||||||
26 | including, but not limited to, the federal Family Educational |
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1 | Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 and the Illinois School Student | ||||||
2 | Records Act, which shall include, without limitation, a record | ||||||
3 | of each complaint and action taken. The State Board of | ||||||
4 | Education shall adopt rules regarding the notification of | ||||||
5 | school districts, charter schools, and non-public , | ||||||
6 | non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools that fail to | ||||||
7 | comply with the requirements of this subsection. | ||||||
8 | (g) Upon the request of a parent or legal guardian of a | ||||||
9 | child enrolled in a school district, charter school, or | ||||||
10 | non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary school | ||||||
11 | within this State, the State Board of Education must provide | ||||||
12 | non-identifiable data on the number of bullying allegations | ||||||
13 | and incidents in a given year in the school district, charter | ||||||
14 | school, or non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary | ||||||
15 | school to the requesting parent or legal guardian. The State | ||||||
16 | Board of Education shall adopt rules regarding (i) the | ||||||
17 | handling of such data, (ii) maintaining the privacy of the | ||||||
18 | students and families involved, and (iii) best practices for | ||||||
19 | sharing numerical data with parents and legal guardians. | ||||||
20 | (h) By January 1, 2024, the State Board of Education shall | ||||||
21 | post on its Internet website a template for a model bullying | ||||||
22 | prevention policy. | ||||||
23 | (i) The Illinois Bullying and Cyberbullying Prevention | ||||||
24 | Fund is created as a special fund in the State treasury. Any | ||||||
25 | moneys appropriated to the Fund may be used, subject to | ||||||
26 | appropriation, by the State Board of Education for the |
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1 | purposes of subsection (j). | ||||||
2 | (j) Subject to appropriation, the State Superintendent of | ||||||
3 | Education may provide a grant to a school district, charter | ||||||
4 | school, or non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary | ||||||
5 | school to support its anti-bullying programming. Grants may be | ||||||
6 | awarded from the Illinois Bullying and Cyberbullying | ||||||
7 | Prevention Fund. School districts, charter schools, and | ||||||
8 | non-public , non-sectarian elementary or secondary schools that | ||||||
9 | are not in compliance with subsection (f) are not eligible to | ||||||
10 | receive a grant from the Illinois Bullying and Cyberbullying | ||||||
11 | Prevention Fund. | ||||||
12 | (Source: P.A. 102-197, eff. 7-30-21; 102-241, eff. 8-3-21; | ||||||
13 | 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-894, eff. 5-20-22; 103-47, eff. | ||||||
14 | 6-9-23.)
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