Because the Board has determined that more detailed policies are necessary to clarify that disruptive activities on the part of any student, including gang members, will not be tolerated, the Board of Education hereby acts to prohibit disruptive, threatening, and intimidating gang-related conduct as follows:
| | A. | DEFINITIONS
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| | | "Gang" is defined as a group of individuals who share a unique name, identifiable marks or symbols, claim territory or "turf", associate on a regular basis, violate the school rules, and engage in criminal or antisocial behavior. A gang is any non-school sponsored group, whose membership may be secret or exclusive, and whose purposes, practices, or intent is to commit violent or illegal acts, or threaten the safety or welfare of others.
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| | | A "school sponsored activity" includes any activity including, but not limited to athletic events, school social events, theater productions, vocal or instrumental competitions, and any other interscholastic competitions, club meetings, club activities, field trips, and any other events sponsored, approved, recognized, associated with, or paid for in whole or in part, by the Stow - Munroe Falls City School District in which the Board may be legally liable for the safety and welfare of those participating or attending. School sponsored activities include students arriving or departing from school property during school sponsored activities.
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| | B. | PROHIBITED ACTIVITY
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| | | 1. | No student on or about school property or at any school sponsored activity shall wear, possess, use, distribute, display, or sell any clothing, medallions, or other jewelry, insignia, emblem, badge, patch, symbol, sign tattoo (whether permanent or temporary), scar or mark, hair style, or other elements which identify a gang or which are evidence of membership or affiliation in any gang or which otherwise disrupts the academic process.
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| | | 2. | No student on or about school property or at any school sponsored activity shall engage in conduct or use any speech, whether verbal or non-verbal (i.e., gestures, hand signals, handshakes, etc.) showing membership or affiliation in a gang when such conduct or speech is intended to cause disruption, or when one knows or has reason to believe that such conduct or speech arouses fear, alarm, resentment, anger, hostility, or violence.
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| | | 3. | No student, on or about school property or at any school sponsored activity, shall use any speech or commit any act or omission which is disruptive, intimidating, or threatening, including but not limited to, the following gang-related activities:
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| | | | a. | Soliciting membership in, or affiliation with, any gang.
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| | | | b. | Soliciting any person to pay for "protection" or threatening any person, explicitly or implicitly, with any other illegal or prohibited act.
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| | | | c. | Painting, writing, tattooing or otherwise inscribing gang-related graffiti, messages, symbols, or signs, on school property or on the property of others during school sponsored activities.
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| | | | d. | Engaging in violence, extortion, or any illegal act or other violation of school policy.
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| | | | e. | Soliciting any person to engage in physical violence against any student or school employee or visitor (whether during a school sponsored activity or on the way to or from a school sponsored activity) or inciting others to act with physical violence.
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| | | | f. | Copying or distributing any gang-related material on school property or at school sponsored activities.
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| | | | g. | Marching, congregating, massing together with the intent to disrupt or intimidate, or when one has reason to believe that such conduct will arouse fear, alarm, resentment, anger, hostility, or violence. Such meetings or congregations are contrary to the purpose of the educational institution and will be considered trespassing. Such offense will be prosecuted.
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| | | 4. | Any student, while on school property, or at a school sponsored activity, who is found to be recruiting another student for gang membership, or who is found to be threatening, insulting, or intimidating another student into joining a gang or preventing another student from getting out of a gang, shall be suspended and/or recommended for expulsion from school.
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| | | 5. | Any person who is involved in a gang-related attack, or who threatens a gang-related attack, on a student or school employee on school property, or at a school sponsored activity, shall be immediately suspended and recommended for expulsion from school. The parents and students will be held liable for damages and repair costs to buildings and school property which result from the actions of the student who was involved in gang activity.
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| | | 6. | Students who violate any of the remaining provisions of this policy will be subject to the appropriate disciplinary action up to and including suspension and/or expulsion. Students will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for any criminal conduct, including, but not limited to, trespassing, vandalism, or assault in violation of this section. Depending on the seriousness of the violation under this paragraph, an intervention program may be used to suspend any part of a school suspension and/or expulsion ordered by the administration.
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