WUSD responds to accusations of bullying at schools

Parents and guardians eager for discussion on matter at May 10 WUSD Governing Board meeting

WILLIAMS, Ariz. — The Williams Unified School District (WUSD) has responded to bullying accusations with a statement sent out to parents, guardians and community members April 25.

According to WUSD, the district has received multiple inquiries from concerned community members regarding the safety measures in place to protect students, including the disciplinary procedures mandated by state and federal laws.

“While many of the questions regard an individual student investigation, please know that WUSD cannot discuss specific investigations to ensure due process and the rights of students through the Federal Education Rights and Protections Act (FERPA),” WUSD said in the statement.

Although the district can’t reveal specifics, WUSD included a list of frequently asked questions in their statement. These FAQs aim to provide information to the community while still respecting ongoing processes and investigations, according to WUSD.

The statement answers questions such as, what is bullying, what is the standard response protocol and how does it relate to school safety, what is the process of removing a student from a school, how does the discipline process work for special education students, what are the impacts of orders of projection or injunctions filed by families, does any school district have a financial interest in avoiding disciplining students and what is Title IX Sexual Harassment and how does it impact schools?

The full statement can be viewed on the WUSD website at wusd2.org.

The Governing Board will meet May 10 at 6 p.m. at the Viking grill located at 440 S. 7th Street for their regular meeting. Parents, guardians and community members are welcome to attend.