Two parents urged the Jennings County School Corporation board on June 20 to increase transparency and safeguards for students with disabilities and to clarify how school resource officers and staff interact with students who have individualized education programs.

The concerns prompted a district staff member to read a newly compiled Frequently Asked Questions document that the administration said summarizes board policy and state requirements on bullying, mental-health responses, reporting and classroom staffing.

The FAQ, which the board said will be posted on the district website, details how to report bullying, how investigations proceed, timelines for appeals and available mental-health supports. It also notes a new online reporting app, Say Something, will be available in the 2025–26 school year.

Jarrah Shelton, a Jennings County resident and parent, told the board, “The ADA is the most fundamental law protecting the civil rights of people with all types of disabilities, including autism,” and asked how often SROs are trained and briefed on interacting with students who have IEPs or 504 plans.

Casey Shelton, also a parent, said he wants students to be safe and suggested increased classroom cameras and regular checks of recordings. “I just want more safety for our children,” Casey Shelton said.

District staff read the FAQ aloud and described procedures the schools follow: initial reports are to be made to an adult (teacher, counselor or administrator) or via ParentSquare or the anonymous online form; principals receive online reports immediately and are to follow up within one instructional day; investigations must begin promptly and typically conclude within five instructional days; parents may appeal an investigation outcome to the superintendent and then to the school board under specified timelines. The FAQ also summarized Indiana’s statutory definition of bullying and explained the district’s peer-conflict distinction, retaliation rules and potential remedial actions ranging from counseling to changes of placement when permitted by law.

On mental-health response, the FAQ said staff are trained to identify signs of extreme depression or suicide risk, that staff stay with an at-risk student during initial stabilization, and that families are contacted immediately and invited to a meeting. The district noted partnerships with external providers — including Riley Hospital for Children, the Jennings County Health Department, Centerstone and Purdue Extension Health — and said crisis teams and additional counselors are used after tragedies.

The FAQ also said that the district prioritizes hiring fully licensed teachers but may use emergency permits when licensed candidates are not available. The presentation stated that as of May 2025, 13 certified staff members were working under emergency permits out of 291 certified employees.

Board members said they would post the FAQ on the district website and distribute copies. No formal action or policy change was taken at the meeting; the FAQ was presented as an informational item.

Materials stated that the district follows Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) limits on disclosure and therefore cannot comment publicly about specific student matters on social media; the FAQ urged parents to provide screenshots or other documentation when reporting concerning social-media content. The district noted that retrieval of content from ephemeral platforms such as Snapchat may require law enforcement involvement.

The board thanked staff for compiling the FAQ and offered to make the document available to attendees and the public online.