School Choice (PDF)
____________________________
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
4 STATE CAPITOL MALL • LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS 72201-1071 • (501)682-4475 • http://arkedu.state.ar.us/
Dr. Kenneth James, Commissioner of Education
November 9, 2005
November 9, 2005
Dr. Robert Clowers, Superintendent
Pulaski Co. Spec. School District
P.O. Box 8601
Little Rock, Arkansas 72216
Dear Dr. Clowers:
The Equity Assistance Center (EAC) within the Arkansas Department of Education has the responsibility of providing technical assistance to school districts to enable them to meet their civil rights and desegregation responsibilities as they relate to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Race and National Origin), Title IX of the Education Amendment of 1972 (Gender), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Disability ) and Standard I of the Standards for Accredidation of Arkansas Public Schools. These laws require that programs and activities be operated in a manner to ensure that people that meet the programs’ qualifications and eligibility requirements are given equal educational opportunity to participate regardless of their race, color, national origin, sex or disibility.
The EAC offers technical assistance to help Arkansas public school districts achieve voluntary compliance by understanding their legal obligations, and to serve those protected by the laws. As part of our technical assistance activities, the EAC conducts on-site visits, workshops, program reviews, distributes information, guidelines, procedures and materials setting requirements in the area of civil rights and describing the process for compliance determination.
This letter is a follow-up to the complaint filed against the School in the Pulaski County Special School District alleging that the school district violated regulations concerning racial Discrimination, Anti- Bullying and Gang Violence policies.
During the course of our review, we collected data, interviewed personnel, and received information relevant to the matter. Based on the information sent to us by your district and considering the allegations of discrimination on the basis of race, gang violence, and anti-bullying, we are concerned that the allegations against the School and Pulaski County Special School District may be valid regarding discrimination and failing to enforce the Anti-Bullying and Gang Violence policies.
Based on this information, the school district may be in violation of the Student Handbook concerning greivance procedures in the following areas:
• School did not properly conduct a thorough investigation and did not present a final investigative report providing proper documentation
• School did not interview a sufficient number of persons regarding gang activity
• Central Administration and School Administration presented contradicting statements and inconsistencies regarding alleged interviews, concerns of gang activity, and policies being implemented to all students
• Central Administration failed to obtain statements from pertinent faculty and staff to determine what was occurring at the school, more specifically the bus driver
• Central Administration failed to instruct faculty to investigate whether a group of students called CASH (Check All Silly Hoes) was actively harassing students in the school
• School Administrators did not review the disciplinary records of students to determine a pattern of violations to disqualify them from privileged activities such as Office Aid
• A safe environment for learning was not emphasized by the practice of the administrators
• School failed to record serious disciplinary violations on students when students threatened and harassed parents and visitors in the Administration Office
• Incidents were not reported properly when students entered class and threatened students openly in public; and
• Students with conflicts were allowed to continue working as Administrative Office Aids, while administration was aware of confrontations
Based on this information, we recommend that the school district take prompt and effective action, as necessary, to:
1. Remedy the effects of the gang violence and bullying to prevent its occurrence by providing information, training, and awareness to the entire student body that gang association will not be tolerated and the consequences of such actions
2. Provide information and training to the entire staff including busdrivers on specific action to take concerning gang violence and altercations on buses and at bus stops
3. Provide information and training to individual students or the entire student body on Anti-Bullying and Gang violence
4. Conduct in-service training for all School personnel regarding the regulatory requirements of Anti-bullying and gang violence when reported by students, parents, and employees.
5. Follow the written policy/procedure for investigating violations of the district policy regarding Anti-Bullying and gang Violence when reported by students, parents, and employees
6. Conduct training regarding proper implementation of the Student Handbook policies
7. Develop a plan to address all the concerns in our findings to alleviate gang activity
8. Develop a procedure for responding promptly and punctually to requests for reviews from central administration office to properly respond to meet the district’s responsibility to prevent and resolve allegations of racial discrimination, allegations of gang activity, and to carryout policies and procedures that protect all students Civil Rights and address equity as part of the school environment
9. Develop a policy for the central office to meet districts’ responsibility to prevent and resolve allegations of racial discrimination, allegations of gang activity, and failure of the administration to carryout policies and procedures that protect all student civil rights and address equity as part of the school environment
10. School is to develop a five year plan to address all concerns in our finding to alleviate gang activity, bullying and race discrimination: and
11. The plan must be submitted to the Equity Assistance Center within thirty (30) days. An annual update should be submitted regarding implementation of the plan providing data to support evidence that the plan is successful or changes of the plan will address success.
These actions for each of the eleven (11) should include, but not be limited to: disciplinary sanctions, monitoring of the future activities of the harasser, counseling for the affected parties, remedial educational services and reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the victim related to the effects of the bullying and gang violence.
Should you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at (501) 682-4213
Respectfully yours,
Oliver Dillingham, Program Manager
Equity Assistance Center
Based on this information, we recommend that the school district take prompt and effective action, as necessary, to:
1. Remedy the effects of the gang violence and bullying to prevent its occurrence by providing information, training, and awareness to the entire student body that gang association will not be tolerated and the consequences of such actions
2. Provide information and training to the entire staff including busdrivers on specific action to take concerning gang violence and altercations on buses and at bus stops
3. Provide information and training to individual students or the entire student body on Anti-Bullying and Gang violence
4. Conduct in-service training for all School personnel regarding the regulatory requirements of Anti-bullying and gang violence when reported by students, parents, and employees.
5. Follow the written policy/procedure for investigating violations of the district policy regarding Anti-Bullying and gang Violence when reported by students, parents, and employees
6. Conduct training regarding proper implementation of the Student Handbook policies
7. Develop a plan to address all the concerns in our findings to alleviate gang activity
8. Develop a procedure for responding promptly and punctually to requests for reviews from central administration office to properly respond to meet the district’s responsibility to prevent and resolve allegations of racial discrimination, allegations of gang activity, and to carryout policies and procedures that protect all students Civil Rights and address equity as part of the school environment
9. Develop a policy for the central office to meet districts’ responsibility to prevent and resolve allegations of racial discrimination, allegations of gang activity, and failure of the administration to carryout policies and procedures that protect all student civil rights and address equity as part of the school environment
10. School is to develop a five year plan to address all concerns in our finding to alleviate gang activity, bullying and race discrimination: and
11. The plan must be submitted to the Equity Assistance Center within thirty (30) days. An annual update should be submitted regarding implementation of the plan providing data to support evidence that the plan is successful or changes of the plan will address success.
These actions for each of the eleven (11) should include, but not be limited to: disciplinary sanctions, monitoring of the future activities of the harasser, counseling for the affected parties, remedial educational services and reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the victim related to the effects of the bullying and gang violence.
Should you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at (501) 682-4213
Respectfully yours,
Oliver Dillingham, Program Manager
Equity Assistance Center
A Simple FOIA Request To Oliver Dillingham's office, is all that it would take to obtain the PCSSD response & COMPLIANCE to this regulatory finding from the State Authorities of Arkansas. It contains proof of perjury on the part of the RICO Complicite PCSSD superintendent Dr. James Sharpe.
