School bullying: what the law requires and how to complain at school

It is Puerto Rico’s legal framework against school harassment. Its architecture has three pieces. First, the definitions: what counts as bullying and what counts as cyberbullying, with the requirement of a pattern rather than an isolated incident. Second, the liaison officers: the Education Department, the Private Schools Association, the Family Department, the Health Department, the Justice Department, the Puerto Rico Police and the School Psychology Association have officers in charge of case management, working cases from both public and private schools and developing training workshops for staff, parents and students. Third, the Protocol: the Education Department is the lead agency coordinating and overseeing the public schools’ Protocol, and the State Department oversees compliance in private and higher education institutions, which are obligated to report cases to it.

The law covers students in all Education Department public schools, private educational institutions and higher education institutions. There is nothing to qualify for or file to be covered: the obligation to have and apply the Protocol belongs to the institution. For students registered in the Special Education Program, the law refers to the disciplinary procedures of the special education manual, which run in parallel.

• That the affected student be in a Puerto Rico public school, private educational institution or higher education institution.Verified against the official source
• That it be a pattern: the law defines bullying as more than one act, continuous or not, usually extending for weeks, months or years — not an isolated incident.Verified against the official source

• The school’s Institutional Protocol: ask for it by name. The law requires it to exist, to be disseminated, and to include the complaint procedure.
• Your documentation of the pattern: dates, descriptions, screenshots in cyberbullying cases, communications with the school. The Protocol must include a procedure for documenting cases and maintaining files.

1. 1

   Step 1: Document the pattern, not just the latest incident

   The legal definition requires a pattern: more than one act, continuous or not, usually extending over time. Note dates, what happened, who was present, and how it affected your child’s school performance. In cyberbullying, keep screenshots, links and profiles — including impersonation cases, which the law expressly mentions — and bear in mind the law recognizes cyberbullying has consequences in the educational environment even when it does not originate at school.

2. 2

   Step 2: Ask for the Institutional Protocol by name

   Every public, private and higher education institution must develop and implement an Institutional Protocol for Managing School Bullying, and the law lists what it must contain: objective, justification, definition of school and cyber bullying, expectations and institutional policy, responsibilities of the educational community, prevention strategies, dissemination procedure, documentation and confidentiality procedure, complaint procedure, investigation strategies, intervention and sanction strategies, follow-up strategies, and guidelines for referrals to health professionals. Asking for it by name changes the conversation with a school that stalls.

3. 3

   Step 3: Report through the Protocol’s procedure and demand follow-up

   File the complaint following the procedure the Protocol establishes, and ask that it be documented — the Protocol must have a documentation and file procedure. Then do not drop it: the Protocol must also have investigation, intervention and sanction, and follow-up strategies. If your child needs emotional support, the guidelines for referrals to health professionals are a mandatory part of the same document.

4. 4

   Step 4: If the school does not respond: go up a level

   In public school, the Education Department is the lead agency responsible for overseeing compliance with the Protocol. In private and higher education institutions, the State Department is the agency in charge of overseeing compliance, and each institution is obligated to report harassment cases at its facilities. In addition, seven entities — Education, the Private Schools Association, Family, Health, Justice, the Police and the School Psychology Association — have liaison officers in charge of managing cases from public and private schools.

First at the school, through the Institutional Protocol’s complaint procedure. Escalation: the Education Department for public schools (de.pr.gov); the State Department for private and higher education institutions. For special education students, the special education manual’s procedures also apply.

• Reporting only the latest incident: the law defines bullying as a pattern, so accumulated documentation is what sustains the case.
• Not asking for the Institutional Protocol: it is mandatory, must be disseminated, and contains the complaint procedure you should follow.
• Assuming cyberbullying does not count because it happened off campus: the law defines it separately and recognizes its repercussions in the educational environment.
• Believing the law applies only to public schools: it covers private and higher education, where the State Department oversees compliance.
• Leaving the complaint without follow-up: the Protocol must include follow-up strategies, and asking for them is part of your claim.
• Confusing Act 85-2017 (bullying) with Act 85-2018 (Education Reform).

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Departamento de Educación de Puerto Rico

  Educación

  bvirtualogp.pr.gov

• Puerto Rico Department of Education

  Educación

  de.pr.gov