D200 STANDARD OF CARE AND SUPERVISION OF STUDENTS
All school employees and volunteers shall maintain the highest standards for supervision, control, and protection of students commensurate with their assigned duties and responsibilities and are expected to establish and maintain professional staff-student boundaries that are consistent with their legal, professional, and ethical duty of care for students.
The following expectations will be enforced:
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A.
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An employee shall immediately report to law enforcement or child protective services any suspected child abuse or neglect. All employees shall immediately report to a building administrator any knowledge of criminal organization (gang) activity, and will immediately report to the Title IX coordinator any report of student sexual harassment or assault.
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B.
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All employees and volunteers shall follow established school safety procedures and protocols.
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C.
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An employee or volunteer shall immediately report to a building administrator any accident, safety hazard, knowledge of threats of violence by students, employees, or volunteers, or other potentially harmful condition or situation s/he detects.
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D.
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An employee shall not fraternize or associate with students at any time in a manner that may give the appearance of impropriety or is not consistent with an employee’s role as an exemplar, including, but not limited to, the creation or participation in any situation or activity that could be considered abusive or sexually suggestive, includes profane language, or involves harmful substances such as illegal drugs, alcohol or tobacco. Further, staff members shall not communicate with students by electronic means (texting, social media messages, etc.) except on School-approved applications and sites, and such communications shall only pertain to educational matters. Social media platforms that purport to automatically erase communications should never be used. Communications exchanged via any electronic platform shall not be deleted unless first uploaded to the School’s data management system. Any sexual or other inappropriate conduct with a student, including communicating in an inappropriately familiar or personal way (peer-to-peer-like manner), by any staff member will subject the offender to potential criminal prosecution and disciplinary action by the Board up to and including termination of employment.
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E.
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If a student approaches a teacher or other employee to seek advice, to ask questions, or to discuss personal matters, including but not limited to friendships, social relationships, sexual behavior, substance abuse, mental or physical health, and/or family relationship, etc., the staff member should assist the student by facilitating contact with certified or licensed individuals in the School or community who are qualified in the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of the student's stated problem. Any employee who determines that a student is in need of services shall report the matter to appropriate authorities and their supervisor. However, under no circumstances should an employee attempt, unless properly licensed and authorized to do so, to counsel, assess, diagnose, or treat the student's problem or behavior, nor should any such employee inappropriately disclose personally identifiable information concerning the student to third persons not specifically authorized by law.
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F.
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An employee shall not transport students in a private vehicle without the prior approval of the principal.
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G.
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A student shall not be required to perform work or participate in activities that may be detrimental to his/her health or welfare.
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H.
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An employee or volunteer is prohibited from electronically transmitting any personally identifiable image of or information on a student(s), such as video, photographs, streaming video, and written posts and documents, by any means, unless such transmission has been pre-approved by School administration, and the student’s parent, where applicable. The Superintendent’s designee(s), however, may transmit information or images related to student extra-curricular/co-curricular activities, and awards and recognitions, provided the student’s parent has not opted out of sharing of directory information.
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I.
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Staff shall set a good example for students in actions, communications and behaviors. This includes, but is not limited to, refraining from use of profanity, demeaning statements, and any other communications that set an inappropriate example for students.
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Employees who fail to follow this policy will be subject to discipline, up to and including termination, and volunteers who fail to follow this policy will be subject to revocation of volunteer privileges, and some violations may subject employees or volunteers to criminal prosecution.
Pursuant to the laws of the State and Board Policy, each staff member shall report to the proper legal authorities immediately, any sign of suspected child abuse or neglect, and to the appropriate administrator any knowledge of gang activity or reports of student sexual harassment or assault.
- I.C. 31-33-5
- Criminal Organization Policy
- Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation
- Adopted: June 15, 2020
- Revised July, 23, 2024