The Governing Board recognizes that the District is responsible for ensuring that it complies with state and federal laws and regulations governing educational programs. The District shall follow uniform complaint procedures when addressing complaints alleging unlawful discrimination based on ethnic group identification, religion, age, gender, color, or physical or mental disability in any program or activity that receives or benefits from state financial assistance. The District shall also follow uniform complaint procedures when addressing complaints alleging failure to comply with state or federal law in adult basic education, consolidated categorical aid programs, migrant education, vocational education, child care and development programs, child nutrition programs and special education programs. (Title 5, Section 4621)
The Board encourages the early, informal resolution of complaints at the site level whenever possible.
Upon receipt of a written complaint from an individual, public agency or organization, uniform complaint procedures shall be initiated. The Superintendent or designee shall distribute full information about these procedures.
The Board recognizes that a neutral mediator can often suggest an early compromise that is agreeable to all parties in a dispute. In accordance with uniform complaint procedures, whenever all parties to a complaint agree to try resolving their problem through mediation, the Superintendent or designee shall initiate a mediation process before beginning a formal compliance investigation. The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that mediation results are consistent with state and federal laws and regulations. ( Title 5, Section 4631)
The Board acknowledges and respects student and employee rights to privacy. Discrimination complaints shall be investigated in a manner that protects the confidentiality of the parties and the facts. This includes keeping the identity of the complainant confidential except to the extent necessary to carry out the investigation or proceedings, as determined by the Superintendent or designee on a case-by-case basis. (Title 5, Section 4621)
The Board prohibits retaliation in any form for the filing of a complaint, the reporting of instances of discrimination or participation in complaint procedures. Such participation shall not in any way affect the status, grades or work assignments of the complainant.
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
200-262.3 Prohibition of discrimination
8200-8498 Child care and development programs
8500-8538 Adult basic education
18100-18179 School libraries
35146 Closed sessions
35160 Authority of governing boards
44670.1-44671.5 School personnel staff development and resource centers
48985 Notices in language other than English
49060-49079 Student records
49490-49560 Child nutrition programs
51513 Personal beliefs
52000-52049.1 School improvement programs
52160-52178 Bilingual education programs
52300-52483 Vocational education
52500-52616.24 Adult schools
52800-52863 School-based coordinated programs
54000-54041 Economic impact aid programs
54100-54145 Miller-Unruh Basic Reading Act
54400-54425 Compensatory education programs
54440-54445 Migrant education
54460-54529 Compensatory education programs
56000-56885 Special education programs
59000-59300 Special schools and centers
64000 Consolidated application process
GOVERNMENT CODE
54957-54957.8 Closed sessions
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 5
3080 Application of section 4600-4671
4600 - 4671 Uniform Complaint Procedures
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 20
1221 - 1232g General Education Provisions Act
1681 - 1688 Discrimination based on sex or blindness, Title IX
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS, TITLE 34
100.1 - 100.13 Nondiscrimination
The Governing Board designates the following compliance officers to receive and investigate complaints and ensure District compliance with law: (Title 5, Section 4621)
Program Coordinator
555 Sinex Avenue
Pacific Grove, Ca 93950
(831)-646-6520
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that employees designated to inves-tigate complaints are knowledgeable about the laws and programs for which they are responsible. Such employees may have access to legal counsel as determined by the Superintendent or designee. (Title 5, Section 4621)
Notifications
The Superintendent or designee shall meet the notification requirements of the Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 4622, including the annual dissemination of District complaint procedures and information about available appeals, civil law remedies and conditions under which a complaint may be taken directly to the California Department of Education. The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that complainants understand that they may pursue other remedies, including actions before civil courts or other public agencies.
The above notification shall state that complainants may seek help from agencies such as legal assistance agencies, local mediation centers or the county office of education. Local resources include:
• Monterey County Office of Education
• Department of Fair Employment and Housing
• Office of Civil Rights
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Procedures
The following procedures shall be used to address all complaints which allege that the District has violated federal or state laws or regulations governing educational programs. Compliance officers shall maintain a record of each complaint and subsequent related actions, including all information required for compliance with the Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 4632.
All parties involved in allegations shall be notified when a complaint is filed, when a complaint meeting or hearing is scheduled and when a decision or ruling is made.
Step 1: Filing of Complaint
Any individual, public agency or organization may file a written complaint of alleged noncompliance by the District.
Complaints alleging unlawful discrimination may be filed by a person who alleges that he/she personally suffered unlawful discrimination or by a person who believes that an individual or any specific class of individuals has been subjected to unlawful discrimination. The complaint must be initiated no later than six months from the date when the alleged discrimination occurred or when the complainant first obtained knowledge of the facts of the alleged discrimination. (Title 5, Section 4630)
The complaint shall be presented to the compliance officer who shall maintain a log of complaints received, providing each with a code number and a date stamp.
If a complainant is unable to put a complaint in writing due to conditions such as illiteracy or other disabilities, District staff shall help him/her to file the complaint. (Title 5, Section 4600)
Step 2: Mediation
Within three days of receiving the complaint, the compliance officer may informally discuss with the complainant the possibility of using mediation. If the complainant agrees to mediation, the compliance officer shall make all arrange-ments for this process.
Before initiating the mediation of a discrimination complaint, the compliance officer shall ensure that all parties agree to make the mediator a party to related confidential information.
If the mediation process does not resolve the problem within the parameters of law, the compliance officer shall proceed with his/her investigation of the complaint.
The use of mediation shall not extend the District's timelines for investigating and resolving the complaint unless the complainant agrees in writing to such an extension of time. (Title 5, Section 4631)
Step 3: Investigation of Complaint
The compliance officer shall hold an investigative meeting within five days of receiving the complaint or an unsuccessful attempt to mediate the complaint. This meeting shall provide an opportunity for the complainant and/or his/her representative to repeat the complaint orally.
The complainant and/or his/her representative and the District's representatives shall also have an opportunity to present information relevant to the complaint. Parties to the dispute may discuss the complaint and question each other or each other's witnesses. (Title 5, Section 4631)
Step 4: Response
Within 60 days of receiving the complaint, the compliance officer shall prepare and send to the complainant a written report of the District's investigation and decision, as described in Step #5 below. (Title 5, Section 4631)
The Board may consider the matter at its next regular Board meeting or at a special Board meeting convened in order to meet the 60-day time limit within which the complaint must be answered. The Board may decide not to hear the complaint, in which case the compliance officer's decision is final.
If the Board hears the complaint, the compliance officer shall send the Board's decision to the complainant within 60 days of the District's initially receiving the complaint or within the time period that has been specified in a written agreement with the complainant. (Title 5, Section 4631)
Step 5: Final Written Decision
The report of the District's decision shall be written in English and in the language of the complainant whenever feasible or required by law. If it is not feasible to write this report in the complainant's primary language, the District shall arrange a meeting at which a community member will interpret it for the complainant.
This report shall include:
1. The findings and disposition of the complaint, including corrective actions, if any (Title 5, Section 4631)
2. The rationale for the above disposition (Title 5, Section 4631)
3. Notice of the complainant's right to appeal the decision to the California Department of Education, and procedures to be followed for initiating such an appeal (Title 5, Section 4631)
4. A detailed statement of all specific issues that were brought up during the investigation and the extent to which these issues were resolved
If an employee is disciplined as a result of the complaint, this report shall simply state that effective action was taken and that the employee was informed of District expectations. The report shall not give any further information as to the nature of the disciplinary action.
Appeals to the California Department of Education
If dissatisfied with the District's decision, the complainant may appeal in writing to the California Department of Education within 15 days of receiving the District's decision. For good cause, the Superintendent of Public Instruction may grant an extension for filing appeals. (Title 5, Section 4652)
When appealing to the California Department of Education, the complainant must specify the reason(s) for appealing the District's decision and must include a copy of the locally filed complaint and the District's decision. (Title 5, Section 4652)
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