Round Lake Area Schools Family & Community Engagement

A student, parent/guardian, employee, or community member should notify any District Complaint Manager if they believe that the Board of Education, its employees, or agents have violated their rights guaranteed by the State or federal Constitution, State or federal statute, or Board policy, or have a complaint regarding:

1. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act;
2. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972;
3. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973;
4. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. §2000d et seq.
5. Equal Employment Opportunities Act (Title VII of the Civil rights Act), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq.
6. Sexual harassment (Illinois Human Rights Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972);
7. Breastfeeding accommodations for students, 105 ILCS 5/10-20.60;
8. Bullying, 105 ILCS 5/27-23.7
9. The misuse of funds received for services to improve educational opportunities for educationally disadvan- taged or deprived children;
10. Curriculum, instructional materials, programs;
11. Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act, P.A. 93-591;
12. 1 Illinois Equal Pay Act of 2003, P.A. 93-0006; or
13. Provisions of services to homeless students.
14. Illinois Whistleblower Act, 740 ILCS 174/1 et seq.
15. Misuse of genetic information (Illinois Genetic Infor- mation Privacy Act (GIPA), 410 ILCS 513/ and Titles I and II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), 42 U.S.C. §2000ff et seq.)
16. Employee Credit Privacy Act, 820 ILCS 70/.

The Complaint Manager will attempt to resolve complaints without resorting to this grievance procedure and, if a complaint is filed, to address the complaint promptly and equitably. The right of a person to prompt and equitable resolution of the complaint filed hereunder shall not be impaired by the person's pursuit of other remedies. Use of this grievance procedure is not a prerequisite to the pursuit of other remedies and use of this grievance procedure does not extend any filing deadline related to the pursuit of other remedies.

Deadlines

All deadlines under this procedure may be extended by the Complaint Manager as he or she deems appropriate. As used in this policy, “school business days” means days on which the District’s main office is open.

Filing a Complaint

A person (hereinafter Complainant) who wishes to avail himself or herself of this grievance procedure may do so by filing a complaint with any District Complaint Manager. The Complainant shall not be required to file a complaint with a particular Complaint Manager and may request a Complaint Manager of the same gender. The Complaint Manager may request the Complainant to provide a written statement regarding the nature of the complaint or require a meeting with the parent(s)/guardian(s) of a student. The Complaint Manager shall assist the Complainant as needed.

Investigation

The Complaint Manager will investigate the complaint or appoint a qualified person to undertake the investigation on his or her behalf. If the Complainant is a student under 18 years of age, the Complaint Manager will notify his or her parent(s)/guardian(s) that they may attend any investigatory meetings in which their child is involved. The complaint and identity of the Complainant will not be disclosed except (1) as required by law or this policy, or (2) as necessary to fully investigate the complaint, or (3) as authorized by the Complainant. The identity of any student witnesses will not be disclosed except: (1) as required by law or any collective bargaining agreement, or (2) as necessary to fully investigate the complaint, or (3) as authorized by the parent/guardian of the student witness, or by the student if the student is 18 years of age or older.

Within 30 school business days of the date the complaint was filed, the Complaint Manager shall file a written report of his or her findings with the Superintendent. The Complaint Manager may request an extension of time.

If a complaint contains allegations involving the Superintendent, the written report shall be filed with the Board of Education, which will make a decision in accordance with the following section of this policy. The Superintendent will keep the Board informed of all complaints. 

Decision and Appeal

Within five school business days after receiving the Complaint Manager’s report, the Superintendent shall mail his or her written decision to the Complainant by U.S. mail, first class, as well as the Complaint Manager.  All decisions shall be based upon the preponderance of evidence standard.

Within ten school business days of receiving the Superintendent’s decision, the Complainant may appeal the decision to the Board of Education by making a written request to the Complaint Manager. The Complaint Manager shall promptly forward all materials relative to the complaint and appeal to the Board of Education.

Within 30 school business days, the Board of Education shall affirm, reverse, or amend the Superintendent’s decision or direct the Superintendent to gather additional information.  Within five school business days of the Board’s decision, the Superintendent shall inform the Complainant of the Board’s action.

This grievance procedure shall not be construed to create an independent right to a Board of Education hearing. The failure to strictly follow the timelines in this grievance procedure shall not prejudice any party.

Appointing Nondiscrimination Coordinator and Complaint Managers

The Superintendent shall appoint a Nondiscrimination Coordinator to manage the District’s efforts to provide equal opportunity employment and educational opportunities and prohibit the harassment of employees, students, and others. The Superintendent shall appoint at least one Complaint Manager to administer the complaint process in this policy. If possible, the Superintendent will appoint two Complaint Managers, one of each gender. The District’s Nondiscrimination Coordinator may be appointed as one of the Complaint Managers.  The District's Nondiscrimination Coordinator is:

Nondiscrimination Coordinator 
Dr. Donn Mendoza, Superintendent 
P. 224.842.2003
dmendoza@rlas-116.org

Appointing Complaint Managers

The Superintendent shall appoint at least two Complaint Managers, one of each gender. The District's Complaint Managers are:

Eric Apgar, Director of Student Services
P. 224.842.2075
eapgar@rlas-116.org 

Mary Lamping, Chief Operations Officer
P. 224.842.2011
mlamping@rlas-116.org