Parent Letter
September 6, 2022
Dear I.S. 24 Families and Students:
Each student and staff member brings to our school community the richness of our city’s cultural diversity and the desire for respect. We are committed to promoting respect for diversity among students and between students and staff so that all of our students feel valued, safe and supported.
It is the policy of the New York City Department of Education (DOE) to maintain a safe and supportive learning and educational environment that is free from harassment, intimidation and/or bullying, sexual, harassment, and discrimination on account of actual or perceived race, color, age, creed, ethnicity, national origin, citizenship/immigration status, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, disability, or weight.
It is a violation of DOE policy for any DOE employee to discriminate against or create a hostile environment for a student by conduct and/or verbal or written acts on school property, or at a school function, on the basis of any of the above-noted grounds. Please see Chancellor’s Regulation A-830 for additional information regarding this policy.
It is also a violation of DOE policy and of the Citywide Behavioral Expectations to Support Student Learning (DOE’s Discipline Code; https://www.schools.nyc.gov/DCode for any student to discriminate against another student on account of actual or perceived race, color, creed, ethnicity, national origin, citizenship/immigration status, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, disability, or weight, or to harass, intimidate or bully another student or to sexually harass another student. Please see Chancellor’s Regulations A-831 and A-832 https://www.schools.nyc.gov/aboutus/policies/chancellors-regulations/volume-a-regulations and the Discipline Code, for additional information regarding DOE’s policy. It is further the policy of the DOE to prohibit retaliation against any student, parent, or DOE employee who in good faith reports or participates in an investigation of allegations of student-to-student harassment, intimidation and/or bullying, sexual harassment, and discrimination.
Our school’s Respect for All (RFA) Liaison(s) to whom students and parents can make reports of student-to-student discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and/or bullying, is Ms. Michelle Sherry at [email protected] T&I 31796 v2021 (English) Our school’s Sexual Harassment Prevention (SHP) Liaison to whom students and parents can make reports of student-to-student sexual harassment is Ms. Cynthia Kiefer at [email protected].
The RFA and SHP Liaisons can be reached by calling the school at 718-982-4700. Students, parents, and individuals other than staff may report allegations of student-to-student discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and/or bullying or student-to-student sexual harassment verbally, or in writing, by submitting a Student and Parent Complaint/Reporting Form https://www.schools.nyc.gov/RespectForAll to the principal/designee or the RFA or SHP liaison, or any other school staff member, or via the online portal available at https://www.nycenet.edu/bullyingreporting.
Any student or parent of a student who feels that the student has been discriminated against by a DOE employee may file a complaint with the DOE’s Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) by contacting:
Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity Management
65 Court Street
Brooklyn, New York 11201
718-935-3320
OEO Complaint Form https://www.nycenet.edu/oeo
Gender-based discrimination and harassment (including sexual harassment), whether by a staff member or a student, can also be reported to the DOE Title IX Coordinator at [email protected].
Some of the conduct that is prohibited by Chancellor’s Regulations A-831 and A-832 is also prohibited by Title IX, which is a federal law prohibiting sex discrimination and harassment in schools and DOE’s programs and activities. In August 2020, the U.S. Department of Education adopted regulations which revise the type of behavior prohibited by Title IX and the procedures for investigating allegations of Title IX student-onstudent sexual harassment, stalking, domestic violence, dating violence, and sexual assault. In some cases, depending on the nature of the allegations, the Title IX Team will conduct its own separate investigation, in addition to the investigation conducted by the school. If this occurs, a member of the Title IX team will reach out to you.
Please refer to the Title IX webpage https://www.schools.nyc.gov/about-us/policies/nondiscrimination-policy/title-ix for additional information regarding Title IX. If there are further updates to Title IX in the coming school years, DOE will communicate key information to parents.
We look forward to a productive school year as we work together to promote Respect for All https://www.schools.nyc.gov/school-life/school-environment/respect-for-all/respect-for-all-handouts
Please feel free to contact me or our schools RFA and SHP liaisons if you have any questions regarding this issue.
Sincerely,
Lenny Santamaria
Principal