HIDOE Letter: Chapter 19 Revised

January 8, 2020

 

Dear Parents/Legal Guardians and Students:

 

The Hawaii Department of Education (HIDOE) is committed to create and sustain positive and supportive learning environments where our students feel safe, secure, and welcomed. In this effort, we have revised our Hawaii Administrative Rules (HAR) Chapter 19 Student Misconduct, Discipline, School Searches and Seizures, Reporting Offenses, Police Interviews and Arrests, and Restitution for Vandalism, and Complaint Procedure and Investigation of Discrimination, Harassment (Including Sexual Harassment), Bullying and/or Retaliation regulations.

 

This revised HAR Chapter 19 rule includes new definitions for bullying , harassment, and cyberbullying. It also includes reclassification of Chapter 19 offenses and a procedure for filing complaints of discrimination , bullying, harassment (including sexual harassment), and retaliation. These revisions can be found at bit.ly/HIDOE-Chapter-19. It is vital that you discuss these revisions with your child(ren) to ensure that he or she is aware of the changes to the HAR Chapter 19 rule. Additionally, in this link there is a copy of the complaint form titled "Department of Education Hawaii Administrative Rules Title 8, Chapter 19 Complaint Form," which is used for filing complaints of student-to-student discrimination, bullying, harassment (including sexual harassment), and retaliation.

 

Should you have further questions and/or would like to request a hard copy of the revised HAR Chapter 19 rule, please contact your school administrator(s) for assistance. Thank you for keeping your keiki and our schools safe.

 

Sincerely,

 

Dr. Christina M. Kishimoto

Superintendent