ac-non discrimination

Date Adopted: 12 November 1997

Current Review / Revision: 13 November 2024

Emery School District Board of Education is committed to providing a working and learning environment free from harassment, discrimination, sexual harassment, and retaliation. The board values diversity among its students and employees. Accordingly, no otherwise qualified person shall be excluded from participation, be denied the benefits of, or otherwise be subjected to unlawful discrimination in any district program or activity as a protected class which includes age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status (Protected Classes).

The purpose of this policy is to promote a work and educational environment at the District that is free of unlawful discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation, and to affirm the Board's commitment to non-discrimination, equity in education, and equal opportunity for employment.

The Board is committed to providing equal access and equal opportunity in its programs, services, and employment, policies, complaint processes, program accessibility, and District facility use. The District shall not deny equal access or fair opportunity to meet, or discriminate against, any group officially affiliated with Boy Scouts of America or is officially affiliated with any other youth group intended to serve young people under the age of 21.

a. Complainant: An individual or group of individuals making a complaint.

b. Compliance Officer: The person designated by the Superintendent to handle inquiries and complaints regarding unlawful discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation. To file a complaint, please see the Emery County School District website to complete the Complaint Form online or contact the Emery County School District Office at 435 687-9846.

c. Complaint: A claim by an aggrieved party or witness that an individual or institution has engaged in unlawful discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation.

d. Discrimination: Conduct, including works or gestures and other actions, which adversely affects an employee's or student's environment or results in disparate treatment or impact, based upon age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

e. Harassment: Conduct, including words or gestures and other actions, repeatedly communicated to another individual, in an objectively demeaning or disparaging manner, that contribute to a hostile, demeaning, or offensive work or school environment for the individual based upon age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

f. Retaliation: Any form of sanction or adverse treatment, including but not limited to intimidation, reprisal, or harassment of an individual because he or she:

i. Has asserted, or assisted another individual to assert, a complaint in either a formal to informal manner with a school or the District or with any state or federal agency;

ii. Has testified, assisted or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing related to a complaint.

g. Disability: An individual's physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a record of such impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment.

h. Respondent: The individual or organization named in a complaint as having engaged in or being responsible for a discriminatory, harassing, or retaliatory act or omission.

i. Sexual Harassment: Unwelcome sexual actions or conduct that is both nonphysical or physical, offensive to the sensibilities of any person, including sexual advances, lewd gestures, words or other communication of sexual nature that has the effect of threatening or intimidating the person against whom such conduct is directed, but does not meet the definition of sexual harassment under Title IX for a hostile environment for sexual conduct that is severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive to deny a person equal access to the education program or activity. Please refer to policy 547 Safe Schools.

Filing a Complaint

a. Submission of a Complaint: At the school level, the principal is the individual responsible for receiving all complaints of discrimination, bullying, harassment, and/or retaliation.

i. Any complaint involving students must be immediately referred to the school principal.

ii. If a complaint involves the principal or another school employee, the Complainant should complete the online complaint form or contact Emery County School District Office at 435-687-9846.

b. If a complaint involves an adult in the school (e.g., vendor, patron, volunteer, etc.,) the Complainant should contact the principal.

Discrimination, Bullying, and Harassment Complaint Procedure 

a. Upon receipt of discrimination, bullying, or harassment complaint regarding a student victim, a principal will review the complaint and determine whether a District or school investigation is needed.

b. An investigation is a formal process including interviews and witness statements from the complainant, the person against whom the complaint is made, witnesses, and others that have pertinent information.

i. Investigations will be conducted in a reasonably confidential manner. However, witnesses and others with pertinent information may need to be aware of the investigation and sufficient facts to elicit their verbal/written statements.

c. The investigator will consider all the evidence and will make findings of fact and conclusions as to whether any District policies have been violated.

d. If appropriate, disciplinary action may be taken against the perpetrator, and other actions may be taken to address the effects on the complainant and the school/workplace environment.

Outside Reporting and Procedures 

a. Nothing in this policy shall prohibit an individual from filing discrimination or harassment claims with the Utah Anti-Discrimination and Labor Division (UALD). An individual has 180 calendar days from the alleged date of the discrimination or harassment to file with UALD.

b. If concerns cannot be resolved at the school or District level, discrimination complaints may be filed with the Office of Civil Rights: Department of Education, Region VIII, Federal Office Building, 1244 Speer Blvd., Suite #310, Denver, Colorado, 80204-3582.

TITLE IX         

The Board shall adopt and publish grievance procedures providing for prompt and equitable resolution of student complaints alleging any action prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended.

20 U.S.C. ' 1681-86

34 C.F.R. ' 106.8(b)

The District shall designate at least one employee to coordinate its efforts to comply with Title IX. The District shall notify all students of the name, office address, and telephone number of the employee(s) so designated.

34 C.F.R. ' 106.8(a) 

TITLE IX COORDINATOR       

The District designates the following employee to coordinate its efforts to comply with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended:

Emery County School District Office

Title IX Coordinator Doug Mecham 

120 North Main Street

Huntington, Utah 84528

435-687-9846 

Nondiscrimination - Students with Disabilities 

The District shall provide free appropriate public education to all qualified students with disabilities who are residents of the District between the ages of three and twenty-one who have not graduated from high school, including regular or special education and related services designed to meet the individual education needs of each qualified student with a disability, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability, as adequately as the needs of nondisabled students. The District shall comply with federal law concerning the education of the student with a disability in the areas of educational setting, evaluation and place, and procedural safeguards.