Dorchester 02 moves to add 'hazing' to bullying policy, to centralize reporting via Stop It app

Miss Graham said the district will add the word "hazing" so the policy and administrative rule consistently read "harassment, intimidation, hazing, or bullying." She said the primary goal is consistency, not to change reporting obligations. "We will add hazing throughout to make that consistent," she said.

Staff described a restructured administrative rule intended to simplify reporting and investigations. Miss Graham said reports may be submitted verbally, by email, through a formal complaint form, or via the district’s anonymous Stop It app, and that school‑level investigation will be the default with appeal routes to the district office. "A report to bullying, harassment, hazing, or intimidation can be made in really almost any format," she said.

Board members asked who will be responsible for districtwide tracking and whether data would be reviewable at the district level. Miss Graham said Miss Mercer Brown is creating a centralized system so that reports—particularly unfounded ones—are not logged as disciplinary incidents in PowerSchool and so incidents can be tracked by complainant, respondent or school.

Members also raised concerns about who can receive a disclosure. Some members argued staff beyond administrators (teachers, custodial or cafeteria staff and volunteers) are sometimes the adults students trust and should be trained to escalate reports to administrators; others cautioned that limiting reporting to administrators ensures trained staff handle initial reports. The board discussed adding staff training at the start of the school year and a mandatory escalation path for non‑administrators who receive disclosures.

The changes are presented as administrative alignment and clarification rather than expanding investigatory obligations; no formal vote was recorded at the meeting.