5145.4P Non-discrimination Students (5)

SHIPMAN-RECOMMENDED STATUTORY LANGUAGE UPDATES
                                                                                             5145.4P

                                                                                           STUDENTS

                           NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY (STUDENTS)

The Board of Education complies with all applicable federal, state and local laws prohibiting the
exclusion of any person from any of its educational programs or activities, or the denial to any
person of the benefits of any of its educational programs or activities because of race, religion,
color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, disability (including
pregnancy), veteran status or gender identity or expression, subject to the conditions and
limitations established by law.

It is the policy of the Board that any form of discrimination or harassment on the basis of race,
religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, disability (including
pregnancy), veteran status, gender identity or expression, or any other basis prohibited by state
or federal law is prohibited, whether by students, Board employees or third parties subject to
the control of the Board. The Board’s prohibition of discrimination or harassment in its
educational programs or activities expressly extends to academic, nonacademic and
extracurricular activities, including athletics. It is also the policy of the Board to provide for the
prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any discrimination or harassment on
the basis of protected characteristics such as race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation,
marital status, national origin, disability (including pregnancy), veteran status or gender identity
or expression.

For the purposes of this policy, “veteran” means any person honorably discharged from, or
released under honorable conditions from, active service in, or released with an other than
honorable discharge based on a qualifying condition from active service in the United States
Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Air Force, and Space Force, and any reserve
component thereof, including the Connecticut National Guard. “Qualifying condition” means
(A) a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury made by an
individual licensed to provide health care services at a United States Department of Veterans
Affairs facility, (B) an experience of military sexual trauma disclosed to an individual licensed
to provide health care services at a United States Department of Veterans Affairs facility, or
(C) a determination that sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression was more
likely than not the primary reason for an other than honorable discharge, as determined in
accordance with Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 27-103(c), (d).

For the purposes of this policy, “race” is inclusive of ethnic traits historically associated with
race, including but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles. “Protective hairstyles”



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includes, but is not limited to, wigs, headwraps and hairstyles such as individual braids,
cornrows, locs, twists, Bantu knots, afros and afro puffs.

For the purposes of this policy, “gender identity or expression” means a person’s gender-related
identity, appearance or behavior, whether or not that gender-related identity, appearance or
behavior is different from that traditionally associated with the person’s physiology or assigned
sex at birth, which gender-related identity can be shown by providing evidence including, but
not limited to, medical history, care or treatment of the gender-related identity, consistent and
uniform assertion of the gender-related identity or any other evidence that the gender-related
identity is sincerely held, part of a person's core identity or not being asserted for an improper
purpose.

Any student and/or parent/guardian wishing to file a complaint regarding discrimination or
harassment may obtain a copy of the Board’s complaint procedures and complaint form which
are included in the Board’s Administrative Regulations Regarding Non-Discrimination/Students.
These regulations accompany Board Policy Series 5000 #5145.42 and are available online at
www.colchesterct.org or upon request from the main office of any district school.

If a complaint involves allegations of discrimination or harassment based on reasons such as
gender/sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability, or pregnancy, such complaints will
be handled under other appropriate policies Series 5000 #5145.5P Sex Discrimination & Sexual
Harassment (Students); Series 5000 #5145P Students & Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 & Title ll of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Any student and/or parent/guardian also may file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights,
U.S. Department of Education (“OCR”):

Office for Civil Rights, Boston Office
U.S. Department of Education
8th Floor
5 Post Office Square
Boston, MA 02109- 3921
(617) 289-0111
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/howto.html

Any student and/or parent/guardian may also file a complaint with the Connecticut Commission
on Human Rights and Opportunities:

Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities
450 Columbus Blvd., Hartford, CT 06103-1835
(860) 541-3400 or Connecticut Toll Free Number 1-(800-477-5737)

Anyone who has questions or concerns about this policy, or and/or who may wish to request or
discuss accommodations based on religion, and/or who would like a copy of the Board’s
complaint procedures or complaint forms related to claims of discrimination, may contact:

       Director of Pupil Services and Special Education


NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY (STUDENTS)                                                     Page 2 of 4
       380 Norwich Avenue, Colchester, CT 06415, 860.537.3103

Anyone who has questions or concerns about the Board’s policies regarding discrimination or
harassment on the basis of gender/sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation may contact the
Board’s Title IX Coordinator:

       Director of Pupil Services and Special Education
       380 Norwich Avenue, Colchester, CT 06415, 860.537.3103


Anyone who has questions or concerns about the Board’s policies regarding discrimination or
harassment on the basis of disability, and/or who may wish to request or discuss
accommodations for a disability, may contact the Board’s Section 504/ADA Coordinator:

       Director of Pupil Services and Special Education
       380 Norwich Avenue, Colchester, CT 06415, 860.537.3103

Legal References:

     Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. § 1681, et seq.
     Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d, et seq.
     Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq.
     Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794, et seq.
     Connecticut General Statutes § 1-1n, “Gender Identity or Expression” defined
     Connecticut General Statutes § 10-15c
     Connecticut General Statutes § 27-103
     Connecticut General Statutes § 46a-51, Definitions
     Connecticut General Statutes § 46a-58, Deprivation of rights
     Connecticut General Statutes § 46a-81a, et seq.
     Public Act No. 21-79, “An Act Redefining ‘Veteran’ and Establishing a Qualifying
          Review Board”


       Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. § 1681, et seq.
       Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d, et seq.
       Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq.
       Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794, et seq.
       Connecticut General Statutes § 10-15c, § 46a-58, and § 46a-81a, et seq.
       Connecticut General Statutes § 1-1n, “Gender Identity or Expression” defined
       Public Act 17-127, An Act Concerning Discriminatory Practices Against Veterans, Leaves
       of Absence for National Guard Members, Application for Certain Medicaid Programs,
       and Disclosure of Certain Records to Federal Military Law Enforcement.


ADOPTED:             May 8, 2001
REVISION:            January 9, 2007
REVISION:            April 10, 2007
REVISION:            June 8, 2010


NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY (STUDENTS)                                                    Page 3 of 4
REVISION:           November 15, 2011
REVISION:           June 13, 2017 (Replaces Policies 5145.42)
REVISION:           August 14, 2018
REVISION:           June 21, 2021
REVISION:           November 9, 2021

COLCHESTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Colchester, Connecticut




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