SOUTHWICK — Southwick-Tolland-Granville Regional School District Superintendent Jennifer Willard issued a statement Monday on the findings of a report issued by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education into the three racial bullying incidents that occurred at Southwick Regional School last year.
“We acknowledge the findings from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) who conducted a thorough investigation into how the district responded to the racial complaints during the 2023-2024 school year,” Willard wrote in an email.
Last February the district began an internal investigation after it learned that two Black students were included as chattel in the “auction” conducted by six Southwick Regional School students between the ages of 13 and 14, including at least one girl on Snapchat beginning late Thursday, Feb. 8, and into the early hours of Friday, Feb. 9.
The mother of one of the Black students involved, Allyson Lopez, requested DESE investigate the Southwick-Tolland-Granville Regional School District’s response to three separate incidents of racial bullying involving her daughter during the school year.
The DESE report required the participation of the school district’s administration through discussions and documentation, discussions with Lopez and her attorney, and Willard, and a review of relevant state and federal laws and regulations.
The report went into specific details about the three individual incidents, two of which occurred at an unknown date in 2023, and the third — the slave auction — in February 2024.
In the 17-page report, each of the three incidents were examined by DESE to determine if administrators had followed the proper procedures in investigating and documenting the incidents.
DESE then addressed whether each of the three incidents had been handled correctly by the assistant principal.
For the first two, which involved the “n-word” being said in the presence of Lopez’s daughter, it found that because the assistant principal didn’t conduct an investigation, a bullying “determination” was not made and that the district didn’t follow Title VI rules, which is a provision of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin.
DESE found the district “failed to comply with [the Civil Rights Act] in this matter because the school knew, or should have known, of a hostile environment based on race — if not the first time the Student reported another’s use of a racial epithet, then certainly by the second time,” according to the report.
In the report, DESE also included guidance on discriminatory harassment if it is believed to have occurred by Russlynn Ali, a former assistant secretary for civil rights in the U.S. Department of Education.
“If abusive behavior is based on race, color, national origin, sex, or disability and creates a hostile environment, schools must respond according to federal civil rights laws and regulations enforced by the Office for Civil Rights,” Ali said.
“ … the school must take prompt and effective steps to end the harassment, eliminate any hostile environment and its effects, and prevent the harassment from recurring,” Ali wrote to DESE.
In Willard’s statement, she addressed the district breaking federal civil rights law when responding to the first two incidents.
“While the findings recognized that the district responded with urgency and took disciplinary and educational measures to address the matter, we also recognize that there is always room for growth and improvement,” Willard wrote.
However, DESE found the district had complied with state law because it had reported the incidents to the parents involved and proceeded with “restorative justice” the day they occurred.
It was after the third incident the assistant principal determined it was bullying, racist speech, and activity, according to the report, which Willard responded to.
“The DESE investigation confirmed that the district followed all applicable laws and procedures in addressing the February 2024 incident,” Willard wrote.
DESE also reported the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is also conducting an investigation related to the Civil Rights Act, which was filed in a complaint by Lopez.
DESE also ordered “corrective action” for two discrepancies between the district’s Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan and its Anti-Bullying Policies and Procedures, and educating the staff and administrators on following the proper procedures when there is a bullying allegation — the actions must be completed by April 4.
DESE ordered that a “‘viable’ report” of bullying be removed from the district’s Anti-Bulling policy, according to the report.
State regulations require districts to have “procedures for receiving reports of bullying or retaliation” promptly responded to and investigated regardless of the subjective “viability” of it, according to the report.
DESE also found a discrepancy the district’s policy regarding the amount of time an investigation must take. One provision says 14 days and another says 15 days. DESE ordered that timeline corrected to be consistent.
The state also required that the district staff be sent a memorandum of the changes in the Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan and Antio-Bullying Policy and Procedures, and memorandum to administrators outlining the procedures for conducting investigations into report of racial harassment under Title VI and how to proceed when a matter includes bullying as defined by state law and that it may constitute a civil rights violation under Title VI.
“The STGRSD has complied with the corrective actions ordered by the DESE,” Willard wrote.
“As we stated at the time of the incident, we take all reports of discrimination, bullying, and harassment seriously and will continue to implement measures that foster an inclusive and respectful school community,” she said. “Moving forward, we are committed to strengthening our policies, increasing staff training on racial equity, and enhancing student education on diversity, inclusion, and belonging through our partnerships with Northeastern University, William James College, PACT (Promoting Acceptance and Compassion Together, a community action group) and the Attorney General’s office.”
