Section 1553 Dating Violence Education
(A) The department, through its office for safe schools, and in consultation with the state board of education, shall:
(1) Develop, within six months of the effective date of this section, a model dating violence policy to assist school districts in developing policies for dating violence reporting and response.
(2) Consult with at least one domestic violence center and at least one rape crisis center in developing the model dating violence policy.
(B) (1) Each school district may establish a specific policy to address incidents of dating violence involving students at school.
(2) The policy may include, but need not be limited to: a statement that dating violence will not be tolerated; violence reporting procedures; discipline procedures for students that commit violence at school; and contact information for and resources available through domestic violence programs and rape crisis programs.
(3) A school district that establishes the policy shall:
(i) Publish the policy in any school district policy or handbook that specifies the comprehensive rules, procedures and standards of conduct for students at school.
(ii) Make the policy available on its publicly available internet website.
(iii) Provide parents and guardians with a copy of the policy.
As used throughout the document, the terms “school entity” and “school” refer to school districts, area vocational-technical schools, intermediate units and charter schools, including cyber charter schools.
For additional information, contact:
PA Department of Education
Safe Schools Office
333 Market Street
Harrisburg, PA 17126-0333
Phone (717) 772-4557
Model Dating Violence Policy - Final (pdf)
Model Dating Violence Student Complaint Form (pdf)
