CNG Code of Honor & Disciplinary Policy

CNG BOARD APPROVED CHILD PROTECTION POLICY

“CNG is committed to promoting a safe and secure environment by protecting all students in our care. In order to achieve this goal, we will respond with a sense of urgency whenever a student is a victim or is at risk of becoming a victim of domestic violence and/or child abuse.

PRIORITY OF SAFEGUARDING STUDENTS

CNG has a shared definition of child protection that is understood and followed by all school community members, aligned to our beliefs and values. As a school, we comply with all legal and statutory requirements. Clear and robust policy/procedures/protocols have been established for reporting, investigation, follow- up and closure.

CNG also has a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) and a Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead. CNG ensures education and online/virtual safety along with

training and support (PD) for our personnel.

Child, Adolescent, and Youth Protection Policy revised on September 9, 2019, by the CNG Board of Directors.

SCHOOL COEXISTENCE POLICIES

COLOMBIAN LAW REGARDING SCHOOL COEXISTENCE POLICIES: PROTOCOLS REGARDING PROBLEMS AFFECTING A SCHOOL COMMUNITY IN CASES OF SCHOOL HARASSMENT, VIOLENCE, OR INFRINGEMENT OF SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

“All people have the right to the free development of their personality without more limitations than those imposed by the rights of others and the legal system”. (Article 16, Political Constitution of Colombia)

Todas las personas tienen derecho al libre desarrollo de su personalidad sin más limitaciones que las que imponen los derechos de los demás y el orden jurídico.

The Protocol for School Coexistence refers to a caring model which defines the processes and policies that should be followed by CNG as mandated by Colombian Law, specifically outlined in the National System of School Coexistence and Education for Human Rights, Sex Education, Prevention and Mitigation of School Violence law (Decree 1965 of 2013). The components of the application of this protocol for School Coexistence at CNG involve the following steps:

1. IDENTIFICATION: Identify situations affecting school coexistence due to harassment or school violence. These have to be referred to the School Coexistence Committee which will look at documentation of the case, focusing its analysis on the implementation of CNG’s Code of Honor and Disciplinary Handbook. Identification can be car- ried out through developing a grade-level profile. At the beginning of each school year, each guidance counselor will complete a screening of his/ her students both individually and as (a) group(s) identifying strengths, weaknesses, and situations that may negatively impact peaceful coexistence and the exercise of human, sexual, reproductive rights, due to harassment and/or school violence.

2. REPORT: This process has the following sub steps: informing, receiving and compiling information, and filing.

3. INTERVENTION: When a case of violence, bullying, and/or aggressive behavior violates human, sexual, and reproductive rights, the guidance counselors will help develop timely, appropriate, ethical, and comprehensive strategies to assist those who have been impacted (the child, adolescent, father, mother, or guardian, and/or teacher). School Administration will also intervene in the event that disciplinary measures are required aligned with the CNG Honor Code and Disciplinary Policy. NOTE: The counseling component may involve outside professionals when the seriousness of the allegation, the surrounding circumstances, and the physical and/or psychological damage to the children involved are beyond the mission of the educational establishment.

4. MONITORING: The monitoring component focuses on the timely reporting of information to the Unified Information System of School Coexistence which will keep track of the state of each of the reported cases of attention.

The situations that affect the School Community and the practice of human, sexual and reproductive rights, are classified into three types. Each situation has a determined protocol under Colombian law as follows:

Type I Situations correspond to conflicts improperly handled and those sporadic situations that adversely affect the school climate, and in no case generate damage to the body or health.

Protocol for Type I Situations: The teacher or staff member who witnesses a situation should strive to meet immediately with the parties involved in the conflict and mediate in a pedagogical way for them to present their views and seek resolution. If there is a need for follow up, the teacher will report the case to the Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director.

1. Inform the Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director through a written report.
2. nform parents or guardians of the situation of the parties involved.
3. The teacher who witnessed the situation, in collaboration with the Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director, will determine

4. a solution in an impartial, fair and just manner, aiming to seek compensation for damage caused, the restoration of rights and reconciliation, in a climate of constructive relations between the parties involved. This can be achieved using the Restorative Circles model.

5. The Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director, will update the student’s Discipline Report in the School Information System (Skyward).

6. The teacher who witnessed the situation, Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director, should do the follow-up on the case and of the commitments in order to verify if the solution was effective or if it requires further intervention. (Protocols established in Colombian Law, Articles 43 and 44 of Decree 1965 of 2013.)

Type II Situations correspond to aggression,bullying, and/or cyberbullying situations, which will not have the characteristics of a crime and meet any of the following characteristics:

1. That occur repeatedly and systematically
2. That causes damage to body or health without causing a major injury for anyone involved.

Protocol for Type II Situations

1. Provide immediate physical and mental health care to person(s) affected.
2. Inform the administrative authorities of the situation, especially when measures to restore rights are required.
3. Take protective measures for those involved, to avoid any action against them.
4. Create opportunities to expose and clarify what happened.
5. Parents or guardians of all students involved will be informed immediately by the Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director. Minutes of the meeting will be kept and stored in the Student File(s).
6. When restoration of rights is required, the situation will be referred to the Principal and this will be reflected in the Discipline Record in the Student Information Software (Skyward). (Law 1098 of 2006)
7. Measures will be taken to protect students from possible retribution. This will be reflected in the Discipline Record in the Student Information Software (Skyward).
8. The Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director will ensure confidential, private, and safe spaces where the parties involved as well as their parents or guardians, can openly share what happened/is happening.
9. The School Coexistence Committee, considering the educational and pedagogical strategies and sanctions set forth in Chapter VII of Title V, will determine the restorative actions needed to repair damages and restore the rights and provide reconciliation within a climate of constructive relations in School. They will also determine the applicable consequences for those who have contributed or participated in the reported situation.
10. The Chairman of School Coexistence Committee will inform the other members of this committee about the situation and the mea- sures taken. The committee will conduct the analysis and monitoring, in order to verify if the solution was effective or if it requires add- ing the protocol set out in Colombian Law, Article 44 of Decree 1965 of 2013.

Type III Situations correspond to situations of school aggression that allegedly constitute crimes against freedom, sexual orienta- tion, integrity referred to in Title IV of Book 11 of Law 599 of 2000, or when they constitute any other offense established in Colombian active Criminal Law.

Protocol for Type III Situations

1.  In cases of damage to body or health, immediate referral and attention by outside physical and mental health professionals is guaranteed. Records of referrals and follow up should be kept by the Guidance Counselor.
2. Parents or guardians of all students involved will be informed immediately by the Associate Principal, Principal, or Program Director. Minutes of the meeting will be kept and stored in the confidential Student File(s).
3. The Chairman of the School Coexistence Committee will immediately and quickly put the matter to the attention of the National Police, Minutes of the meeting will be kept and stored in the Student File.
4. Notwithstanding, the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the members of the School Coexistence Committee will be cited under the terms set out in the Manual of Coexistence. This citation shall be recorded.
5. The Chairman of the School Coexistence Com- mittee will inform the members of said committee, providing facts without disclosing information that may violate the right to privacy and confidentiality of the parties involved as well as the report given to the competent authority.
6. Although the situation was taken to the competent authorities, the School Coexistence Com- mittee shall immediately adopt the School’s own measures aimed to protect, within the scope of its powers, the victim, the person to whom the aggression is credited and those who have reported or are part of the situation pre-sented. This should be recorded.
7. The Chairman of the School Coexistence Committee will report the information of the case to the applicable system of Unified Information of School Coexistence.

The cases under this protocol will be monitored by the School Coexistence Committee, the authority that acknowledged the situation and the committee of the municipality, the district, or the department (state) for School Coexistence that exercises jurisdiction over the educational establishment which presented the incident.

CNG Information about the Coexistence Committee:

This committee strives to maintain absolute discretion, impartiality, and confidentiality since it works with very sensitive information and cases that cannot be shared except with CNG’s Director and external legal authorities. The members of this committee are the CNG ́s Director, the CNG ́s Child Protection Leader (DSL), the designated CNG Child Protection Leader, the Personero, the CNG ́s Student Council President, the Parent Council President as well as the counselors and designated members of the counselors, Director of Human Resources, Director of Learning Programs, Athletics Director and Director of Exceptional Learner Programs. For more information on the functioning of CNG’s Coexistence Committee, please consult the Coexistence Manual.

For additional information about how the CNG Coexistence Committee functions, please refer to the Governance section in the Community Handbook.