BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2845
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Date of Hearing: April 20, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Patrick O'Donnell, Chair
AB 2845
(Williams) - As Amended April 12, 2016
SUBJECT: School safety: Safe Place to Learn Act
SUMMARY: Requires the California Department of Education (CDE),
as part of its compliance monitoring, to assess whether local
educational agencies (LEAs) have provided information to
certificated staff serving grades 7-12 on schoolsite and
community resources for students who may face bias or bullying,
including Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian
students. Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI) to post anti-bullying resources related to affiliation or
perceived affiliation with any religious group, including
Muslim, on its website. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires that the CDE, as part of its compliance monitoring
activities, assess whether LEAs have provided information to
certificated staff serving grades 7-12 on schoolsite and
community resources students subject to bullying,
discrimination, or harassment, including for Arab, Middle
Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian students. This is an
expansion of an existing requirement that the CDE assess
whether a corresponding requirement has been met on behalf of
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lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ)
students.
2)Requires that the SPI post on its website, annually update,
and provide to each school district, a list of statewide
resources, including community-based organizations, that
provide support to youth who have been subjected to
school-based discrimination, harassment, intimidation, or
bullying based on affiliation, or perceived affiliation, with
any religious group, including Muslim. This adds specificity
to an existing requirement that the CDE post anti-bullying
resources on its website.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion (or
perceived religious affiliation) in any educational program or
activity by an educational institution receiving state funds
(Education Code § 220, Penal Code § 422.55).
2)Requires the CDE to monitor local educational agencies LEAs
for adoption of processes for receiving and investigating
complaints of discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and
bullying, and establishes complaint procedures.
3)Requires the CDE, as part of its compliance monitoring
activities, to assess whether LEAs have provided information
to certificated staff serving grades 7-12 on schoolsite and
community resources for LGBTQ students.
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4)Requires the CDE to annually post on its website, and annually
update, and provide to each school district, a list of
statewide resources, including community-based organizations,
that provide support to youth who have been subjected to
school-based discrimination, harassment, intimidation, or
bullying, and their families.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS:
Need for the bill. The author states, "The negative tone in
our national politics has enflamed a disturbing trend of
scapegoating and fear mongering of American Muslims. Recently, a
rash of hate crimes aimed at Muslims and Sikhs have occurred
across the nation, including physical assaults and the
defacement of religious sites in California. AB 2845 aims to
address potential spikes in bullying and discrimination in our
public education system as a result of increased Islamophobia.
According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations,
California Chapter, 55% of American Muslim students attending
California public schools surveyed experience some form of
bullying based on their religious identity. This is twice as
high as the national statistic for students who report being
bullied at school. CAIR-CA also finds that American Muslim youth
continue to identify student-teacher relations as needing
improvement in addressing such bullying. Similarly, the Sikh
Coalition has reported that 50% of Sikh students have
encountered school bullying. This number increases significantly
for turbaned Sikh students, of which 67% have encountered
bullying. In Fresno, 51% of the students surveyed reported that
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they felt school officials did not respond adequately to
bullying incidents. AB 2845 will ensure that school employees
will be provided schoolsite and community resources so that our
students are provided the assistance and support they need when
faced with school bullying and discrimination."
Surveys of California Muslim and Sikh students find high rates
of bullying. A 2015 report published by the California chapter
of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, titled Mislabeled:
The Impact of School Bullying and Discrimination on California
Muslim Students, reported data from surveys of 500 Muslim
students in California. It found:
55% of students surveyed reported being subjected to
some form of bullying based on their religious identity.
According to the report, this is twice as high as the
national percentage of students who report being bullied at
school.
29% of the female students who wear a hijab, the Islamic
headscarf, reported being offensively touched by another
student, and 27% reported being discriminated against by
their teacher.
19% of students reported cyberbullying based on
religion.
20% of students reported that school staff either made
offensive comments about the students' religion or allowed
other students to make such remarks, and 20% of students
who reported bullying were unhappy with the response from
school administrators.
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A 2014 publication by the Sikh Coalition, titled "Go Home
Terrorist:" A Report on Bullying Against Sikh American School
Children reported data from a survey and focus groups with
several hundred Sikh students in Fresno. It also found high
rates of bullying:
54% of Sikh youth have experienced bullying or
harassment, 21% report being bullied or harassed at least
once a week, and 13% report bullying almost daily.
67% of Sikh youth who wear turbans and maintain uncut
hair in accordance with religious beliefs have experienced
bullying and harassment.
63% of those bullied believed they were bullied on the
basis of religion or ethnicity, and almost 27% believed it
was because other students thought they looked like
terrorists.
51% of Sikh youth believe school officials do not
respond adequately to bullying incidents.
CDE bullying resource website. This bill requires the CDE to
include information on bullying and discrimination based on
religious affiliation on its website. Pursuant to current law,
the CDE maintains a page of resources on bullying on its
website, which provides links to numerous resources for program,
policy, and curriculum on this topic. There are resources
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listed that are specific to bullying of students with
disabilities, and bullying of LGBTQ students. While some
resources mention religious discrimination, there do not appear
to be any resources listed which specifically address
school-based bullying based on actual or perceived religious
affiliation.
Does this bill require school personnel to engage with religious
institutions? This bill requires the CDE to assess whether
schools are providing information to students on community
resources for the support students at-risk of bullying,
including Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian
students. By listing a religion, the bill could be read to
require school personnel to engage with religious institutions
(see recommended amendment below).
Recommended amendments. Staff recommends that the bill be
amended as follows:
1.Clarify that the requirement to provide resource information
to school staff applies to resources for students who are
subject to discrimination and bullying based on actual or
perceived religious affiliation (rather than all students
subject to bullying) and use this broad definition rather than
specifying ethnic groups.
2.Clarify that the bill does not require school personnel to
engage with religious institutions in the course of
identifying community support resources.
Related legislation. AB 827 (O'Donnell, Chapter 562, Statutes
of 2015) of this Session Requires the CDE, as part of its
compliance monitoring, to assess whether local educational
agencies (LEAs) have provided information to certificated staff
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serving grades 7-12 on schoolsite and community resources for
LGBTQ students.
AB 9 (Ammiano, Chapter 723, Statutes of 2011) requires a school
district to include specific information in its policies and
procedures regarding discrimination, harassment, intimidation,
and bullying, requires the policies to include complaint
procedures and alternative discipline policies for pupils who
engage in this behavior, and requires the CDE to post
anti-bullying resources on its website.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Asian Americans Advancing Justice - California (Co-Sponsor)
Council on American-Islamic Relations, California Chapter
(Co-Sponsor)
Sikh Coalition (Co-Sponsor)
Afghan Coalition
Asian Law Alliance
American Civil Liberties Union of California
California Immigrant Policy Center
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Islamic Center of San Diego
Islamic Networks Group
Islamic Society of North (San Diego) County
Muslim American Society Public Affairs and Civic Engagement
Muslim Community Center of Greater San Diego
San Jose Japanese American Citizens League
South Bay Islamic Association
Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network
Somali Family Service of San Diego, Inc.
South Asian Bar Association of Northern California
Opposition
None received
Analysis Prepared by:Tanya Lieberman / ED. / (916) 319-2087
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