2018 New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 22 - Public Schools
Article 2 - Public Education Department and Commission
Section 22-2-21 - Bullying and cyberbullying prevention programs.

A. The department shall establish guidelines for bullying prevention policies to be promulgated by local school boards. Every local school board and governing body of a charter school shall promulgate a bullying prevention policy by August 2011. Every public school shall implement a bullying prevention program by August 2012.

B. Every local school board and governing body of a charter school shall promulgate a specific cyberbullying prevention policy by August 2013. Cyberbullying prevention policies shall require that:

(1) all licensed school employees complete training on how to recognize signs that a person is being cyberbullied;

(2) any licensed school employee who has information about or a reasonable suspicion that a person is being cyberbullied report the matter immediately to the school principal or the local superintendent or both;

(3) any school administrator or local superintendent who receives a report of cyberbullying take immediate steps to ensure prompt investigation of the report; and

(4) school administrators take prompt disciplinary action in response to cyberbullying confirmed through investigation. Disciplinary action taken pursuant to this subsection must be by the least restrictive means necessary to address a hostile environment on the school campus resulting from the confirmed cyberbullying and may include counseling, mediation and appropriate disciplinary action that is consistent with the legal rights of the involved students.

C. Each local school board and governing body of a charter school shall make any necessary revisions to its disciplinary policies to ensure compliance with the provisions of this section.

D. As used in this section, "cyberbullying" means electronic communication that:

(1) targets a specific student;

(2) is published with the intention that the communication be seen by or disclosed to the targeted student;

(3) is in fact seen by or disclosed to the targeted student; and

(4) creates or is certain to create a hostile environment on the school campus that is so severe or pervasive as to substantially interfere with the targeted student's educational benefits, opportunities or performance.

History: Laws 2011, ch. 50, § 1; 2013, ch. 178, § 1; 2015, ch. 108, § 2.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, required the governing body of a charter school to promulgate a bullying prevention policy and a specific cyberbullying prevention policy and to make necessary revisions to its disciplinary policies to ensure compliance with the new policies; in Subsection A, after "local school board", added "and governing body of a charter school"; in Subsection B, after "local school board", added "and governing body of a charter school"; and in Subsection C, after "local school board", added "and governing body of a charter school".

The 2013 amendment, effective June 14, 2013, required local school boards to promulgate cyberbullying prevention policies; in the title, after "bullying", added "and cyberbullying"; and added Subsection B.