Over the Line at School?

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Potomac View Elementary School administrators overreacted in bringing in the police in response to a 6-year-old boy slapping a classmate's bottom twice after another classmate had done the same [editorial, April 4]. I oppose such zero- tolerance polices.

But The Post showed appalling insensitivity to the inappropriate nature of Randy Castro's act. Speaking from my own experience and that of my two daughters in Montgomery County schools, our culture remains largely indifferent to privacy and harassment issues involving gender.

Acts of taunting and inappropriate touching such as unwanted kissing and slapping should be taken seriously. The cumulative effect of such "minor" incidents can create lasting feelings of insecurity and fuel gender

stereotyping.

Potomac View administrators were right to take some action, yet too many adults like your editorial writers shrug such incidents off as "playful" and worthy of "giggles" rather than concern.

CYNTHIA TERRELL

Takoma Park

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The April 3 front-page article "For Little Children, Grown-Up Labels As Sexual Harassers" examined an important issue. However, as the article itself highlighted, there can be confusion about the legal obligations of schools regarding sexual harassment.

Here's the simple truth. Two landmark Supreme Court decisions -- Gebser v. Lago Vista Independent School District and Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education-- require schools to take reasonable steps when officials learn about harassment of students, which is defined as conduct serious enough to deprive the victim of access to educational opportunities. Those steps must protect students from harassment and provide them with a safe learning environment.

We get calls from victims of serious sexual harassment whose schools have ignored their responsibilities; we also hear about schools that overreact -- as Potomac View Elementary administrators concede theirs did.

While the legal decisions in no way require schools to call the police when a 6-year-old boy hits a classmate on the bottom, they do require schools to properly address the pervasive problem of sexual harassment.

The right response is to help educators learn to distinguish serious, illegal harassment from the harmless behavior of young children.

MARCIA D. GREENBERGER

Co-President

National Women's Law Center

Washington