Washoe County High School Students Speak Out Against Alleged Abuse on School Bus and Lack of Response
Jordan Bader and Maira Miranda interview Washoe County students following a walkout and social media anger after allegations of sexual harassment on a Reno High school bus.
**Because minors are involved, we decided to keep each student in this story anonymous and have created new names for each of them.**
This October, Reno High student Andy says he was the victim of sexual harassment on a school bus ride. There was social media content about this, including an initial Instagram post with several thousand likes, which created instant awareness and concern among other students, including a walkout at another school.
Andy says the punishment for the perpetrator was a seven day bus suspension, but the Reynolds Sandbox could not confirm this. We reached out to Reno High principal Kris Hackbusch and a teacher one of our reporters was familiar with to get more details on the allegations and if punishment had been handed down, but received no response back.
“I just wish Washoe County would address sexual assault, bullying, and harassment really severely,” Any told us. “What they showed to me with a seven day bus suspension was that they slapped the kid’s hand and said ‘don’t do this again.’”
Other students though were more responsive publicly and with the Sandbox. A student from Wooster soon commented on Instagram, “Can the kids at Wooster help in any way?”
Approximately 60 students at Reed high school, located nearly 20 minutes away from Reno High, participated in a school wide walk out to protest the lack of adequate action.
According to Sarah, herself and two other students posted sticky notes around their campus to raise awareness of the problem and publicize the walkout. She said she was proud that so many of her peers showed up.
Other students shared their intentions to write protest letters to the district.
Andy told us that after his complaint he felt heard by the Reno High administration, but that they were limited in their ability to handle the situation as it happened on the bus instead of school property.
It is unclear whether the fact it happened on a bus made any difference in terms of subsequent actions, or whether it was because the accusation came from a social media post, without any video.
There was a recent report on bullying that took place on another school bus in Washoe County, with a video of a sixth grader being hit by another student, and the school district had this to say:
“The Washoe County School District School Police Department and Transportation Department are aware of the altercation on the school bus. An investigation is underway to identify the students responsible for this incident and ensure they are held accountable for their actions. WCSD does not tolerate or condone violence of any kind in its classrooms, on school grounds, or on school buses. The District is conducting a thorough investigation into this incident and will take the appropriate disciplinary steps.”
The Reno High allegations received no such official County School District response that we’ve seen.
Many of us have seen movies that feature bullying on school buses. In fact the 2011 movie titled “Bully” was set on a school bus. The cameraman follows the main character to the bus stop and onto the bus, where the bullying begins and doesn’t stop. The boy sitting beside him on the bus is seen violently threatening him. For some students, school buses are danger zones with a single adult present, driving and not trying to protect them from bullies and others creating uncomfortable, threatening situations.
In the Student Behavior Washoe County Administrative Procedures Manual, on Page 20, sexual assault is labeled as ‘sexual misconduct’ and is treated as sexual harassment or bullying. According to the handbook, the procedure that should occur after a first incident is an administrative conference/investigation, parent contact, loss of privilege, 1–3 day suspension, and contacting school police if a student reports an assault. This seems much harsher than the bus suspension Andy mentioned.
The manual does include buses as a location in one of its opening sections: “No District employee, including, without limitation, administrators, faculty, or other staff members, nor students shall engage in acts of bullying, harassment, or discrimination on the premises of any public school, school-sponsored event, or school bus in the District. Prohibited behaviors include cyber-bullying, sexual harassment, hazing, intimidation and retaliation. “
We also interviewed Amy, a student at Hug high school who became involved in the pressure campaign after seeing the Instagram post. Amy says she would have hoped for even an expulsion to set a precedent.
In the Washoe County School District policy book, it mentions that expulsion is usually avoided because it is not always an appropriate solution. “Expulsion is the permanent removal of a student from instruction,” the manual states. “Although the law permits for this action under certain circumstances, the District generally pursues temporary placement of students in alternative settings.”
Even so, Andy told us he would still encourage others in similar situations to speak up because he said: “even though there are some cases where you’re afraid of being retaliated against by your bullies and perpetrators, nothing will change if you don’t speak up.”
