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Ross Local outlines bullying response, digitized reporting and new survey results
Summary
Director of Special Services Becky Bort Morgan told the board the district is clarifying definitions of harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB), has digitized complaint reporting, and will publish separate 'substantiated' and 'reported' tallies; officials cited staff referrals via ABRAE and new SEL curriculum as factors in recent declines.
Director of Special Services Becky Bort Morgan told the Ross Local School District board that the district is tightening how it defines and responds to harassment, intimidation and bullying and is moving its complaint system online.
Morgan said the legal definition of bullying requires an intentional act that occurs more than once and causes mental or physical harm, while harassment or intimidation can be a single incident when conduct is based on a protected characteristic. "When we are labeling an incident as a bullying incident, all of those criteria are met," Morgan said.
She described two changes meant to improve reporting and follow-up: a digitized complaint form available on rossrams.com and a continued reliance on ABRAE teacher referrals as the primary source of formal complaints. "The majority of our data, I would say, comes from ABRAE, from the teacher referrals," Morgan said, adding that staff training (module 4 of the compliance course) now explicitly covers anti-harassment, bullying and teen dating violence.
Morgan also said the district will begin publishing two numbers for each building — total reports and the subset substantiated as meeting HIB criteria — to give the community clearer context about how many incidents are reported versus confirmed. She described an investigation flowchart that begins with identifying witnesses and interviewing alleged victims and aggressors, contacting parents and, if the allegation suggests criminal behavior, notifying law enforcement.
Board members asked about data sources and cadence of the climate surveys. Morgan said the high school and middle school surveys used this year were developed internally for Ross and that the district intends to repeat the survey in spring. She credited a combination of measures — banning cellphones during the day at the middle and high schools, introduction of the CharacterStrong SEL curriculum in grades 6–12, and better reporting — as factors in a downward trend in reported incidents since the 2022–23 school year.
The presentation included prevention activity examples (student service projects, anti-bullying lessons in October, and assemblies) and a reminder of policy JFCF that addresses harassment, intimidation and bullying. Morgan said the Safer Ohio School tip line remains available for anonymous reports and that tips submitted there go directly to Dr. Rice, the superintendent, to be routed to the appropriate building for investigation.
The board did not take formal action on policy during the presentation; Morgan said revisions and reporting changes will be reflected when the district posts updated figures on its website.
