What is Bullying?
Louisiana defines bullying as a pattern of harmful behavior that includes:
- written, electronic or verbal communications that threaten harm,
- obscene gestures, taunting or malicious teasing,
- persistent shunning or excluding a student, or
- physical harm, such as hitting, pushing or damaging personal property.
These actions must occur more than once and cause physical or emotional harm, interfere with learning, or disrupt the school environment.
How to Report and Investigate Bullying
Under Louisiana law, schools are responsible for investigating bullying, notifying parents, and taking appropriate disciplinary action. The Louisiana Department of Education provides forms and resources to support parents and educators. Bullying incidents must be reported to and handled by the school or Local Education Agency where the incident occurred.
Report Bullying
If you experience or witness bullying, report it to a school staff member or administrator. Students, parents, or educators can complete the official Bullying Report Form and submit it to your school principal or appropriate school leader.
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Investigate Bullying
If you are a school leader who is investigating a report of bullying, you can use the Bullying Investigation Form to document the investigation.
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If School Does Not Act
If the school fails to act, you may follow this escalation process:
- Report to the school board (LEA) using the Bullying Incident Monitoring Form. The school board must begin its own investigation by the next school day.
- If the school board does not act, you may report the incident to the Louisiana Department of Education using the Bullying Incident Monitoring Form.
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Bullying Resources
The Louisiana Department of Education provides forms, templates, and guidance to support students, families, educators, and school systems in preventing and responding to bullying.
Bullying incidents must be reported to and handled by the school or Local Education Agency (LEA) where the incident occurred. While the LDOE does make resources available to assist with reporting incidents, bullying incidents must be reported at the local level.
Under Louisiana law (R.S. 17:416.14), schools are responsible for investigating bullying, notifying parents, and taking appropriate disciplinary action. Under Act 861 enacted in 2012, school employees are required to participate in four hours of training to learn how to detect, prevent and end bullying. Teachers or other school personnel who receive a complaint about bullying must verbally notify the principal on the day of incident and in writing within two days of the incident. The principal must notify parents and launch an investigation on the day of the incident. The investigation must be completed with ten days.