Sexual Harassment in Schools

            Sexual harassment is unwelcome harassment of a sexual nature. In schools, sexual harassment is illegal by a federal law, Title IX. There are two forms of unlawful sexual harassment in schools. One is quid pro quo harassment. This occurs when a school employee bases an educational decision on the student’s submission to unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature. It is equally unlawful whether the student resists or accepts. The second type of sexual harassment in schools is hostile-environmental harassment. This occurs under the same conditions as the first, except it can take place between anyone at a school and it is persistent that affects the victim’s ability to participate in things in or out of school. Hostile-environmental harassment is more common that quid pro quo harassment. According to Hostile Hallways 78% of students reported experiencing at least one incident of sexual harassment since starting high school, including 92% of the females and 57% of the males. Some students, however, do not report that they have been the victim of sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is also most often experienced in grades 8-11 as well. The specific kinds of sexual harassment, such as touching, jokes, rumors, and etcetera occur about the same amount of time. About 75% of students that are responsible for sexual harassment are male and 25% are female. About 15% of cases the same sex is responsible. However, schools must have a procedure, according to Title IX, to resolve all sexual harassment related complaints, if a school doesn’t have this; the school itself is held responsible. Sexual harassment affects a student’s grades most of the time. Some students even, if experiencing harassment, drop classes, transfer to a different school, or even leave school all together. Sexual harassment is causing a serious disruption in schools everywhere and effects everyone, including males, females, and students of every ethnicity. That is the situation on sexual harassment in schools.