> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Open letter: BUSD must protect students with disabilities - URL: https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2026/10/23/community/open-letter-busd-must-protect-students-with-disabilities/ - Published: 2026-10-23T03:32:50.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T04:02:28.000Z - Description: After Berkeley High's Unity Week violence, parents are demanding immediate safety measures and an end to disability-based harassment. - Author: Guest Contributor - Tags: Community, BHS, Downtown, #articles Dear Superintendent and members of the board, We are writing to you as parents/caregivers, educators, and community members of [Berkeley Special Education Parent & Caregiver Group](https://www.bspedparents.org/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) (BSPED) to demand immediate, concrete action by [Berkeley Unified School District](https://www.berkeleyschools.net/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) (BUSD) and by the [School Board](https://www.berkeleyschools.net/schoolboard/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) to protect students with disabilities from violence, bullying, harassment, and discrimination. School traditions and practice have created a severe and escalating safety crisis facing students within Berkeley Unified School District. In the latest incident, on Friday, Oct. 16, groups of students actively used school grounds as a launchpad to commit targeted, [violent physical assaults against a student with disabilities](https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2026/10/19/community/berkeley-high-parents-raise-alarm-unity-week-fights/) upon departing campus, resulting in hospitalization. This is not the first time students with protected status have been targeted, specifically on "Freshman Friday" and "Rally Day" or "Unity Day." There is a long history of awareness about these assaults: [2008](https://www.berkeleyparentsnetwork.org/recommend/schools/BHS/freshmanfridays?ref=berkeleyscanner.com), [2016](https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2016/opinion/why-the-tradition-of-egging-shouldnt-be-kept-alive?ref=berkeleyscanner.com), [2019](https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2019/opinion/rally-day-can-be-had-without-hate-or-violence?ref=berkeleyscanner.com), [2021](https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2021/investigative/rally-day-examining-the-complicated-history-of-the-controversial-bhs-tradition?ref=berkeleyscanner.com), [2022](https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2022/news/rally-day-tradition-continues-amid-administration-caution-student-spirit?ref=berkeleyscanner.com), [2023](https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2023/10/21/crime/berkeley-high-spirit-day-fights-downtown-teenager-hurt/), [2026](https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2026/news/81426-downtown-berkeley-bart-incident-brief?ref=berkeleyscanner.com). (Note that this is not a comprehensive list.) ****What the parents want:** \- Investigate the assault, including possible disability-based bias, and cooperate with police \- Publicly condemn the violence and explain how families can report concerns \- Strengthen campus security, including metal detectors, contraband checks and restrictions on off-campus privileges during special events \- Establish safety plans for students with disabilities and provide counseling and other support \- Address off-campus violence that affects student safety and education \- Develop a districtwide disability-safety plan and provide a written response within five business days This continuous pattern of behavior is unacceptable, unlawful, and poses a direct threat to the safety and well-being of all children. While the district may view off-campus incidents as outside its jurisdiction, the law is clear: Because these attacks originate on school grounds and create a pervasive hostile learning environment, the district is legally obligated to act. Parent and caregiver reports of persistent disability-based exclusion and concerns about inadequate responses to student violence raise urgent questions about student safety and the District's response. Students with disabilities are entitled to safety, dignity, and meaningful inclusion — not a school environment in which they are targeted or left unprotected. BUSD must act immediately, without waiting for a final police report, to communicate throughout its schools and to the wider community its commitment to student safety and to implement appropriate protective measures. BUSD possesses multiple legal and policy obligations to fulfill its mandate of educating every child. 1. **Violation of Civil Rights & Creation of a Hostile Learning Environment** (Title II / Section 504) - Under [Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/29/794?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) and [Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act](https://www.ada.gov/law-and-regs/ada/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) (ADA), the district is strictly prohibited from permitting disability-based discrimination and harassment. When off-campus assaults bleed into the school setting--causing disabled students to feel unsafe, miss school, or suffer academically--the district is legally required to intervene. - The [Berkeley Municipal Code, §§ 3.66.010-3.66.020](https://gocodebook.com/library/us/ca/berkeley/title-3-boards-commissions-and-committees/chapter-3.66-commission-on-disability?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) establishes the City's commitment to the full integration and participation of people with disabilities and the removal of barriers to that participation. BUSD must also uphold these principles in its own school communities. - Under established federal standards ([Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education](https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/526/629/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com)), school administration possesses actual knowledge of these severe, targeted attacks. Continuing to take ineffective or passive measures constitutes deliberate indifference, exposing the district to substantial financial liability and federal civil rights investigations. 1. **Negligent Supervision and Breach of Duty of Care** - Because the school is aware of and continues to foster an environment of targeting disabled individuals and groups, the district retains a direct duty of care. The failure of BHS administration and security staff to secure campus perimeters, search for and confiscate contraband/weapons, and prevent students from leaving campus with violent intent constitutes negligent supervision. 1. **Mandatory Reporting Failures** - School personnel — including teachers, administrators, and counselors--are legally mandated reporters. Failing to report reasonable suspicion or actual knowledge of physical abuse, battery, or torture of a child or dependent adult with a disability to law enforcement or protective services is a criminal omission under state law. - BUSD's Board Policy 5131.2, Bullying prohibits conduct including harassment, threats, intimidation, bodily injury, and hate violence against students. The policy recognizes that disability-based bullying may also trigger state and federal civil-rights obligations. - Similarly, BUSD's Administrative Regulation 5131.2 requires the District to assess whether incidents fall within its responsibility and, when an alleged criminal act falls outside that scope, to refer it to appropriate law enforcement, provide applicable interventions, and document the matter. Off-campus location alone must not substitute for a comprehensive assessment of a reported incident's connection to school safety and student well-being and of the District's responsibility. - California Penal Codes §§ [422.55](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes%5FdisplaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN§ionNum=422.55&ref=berkeleyscanner.com) and [422.6](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes%5FdisplaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN§ionNum=422.6&ref=berkeleyscanner.com) address criminal conduct motivated by a victim's actual or perceived disability, including certain acts of force or threats that interfere with protected rights. [Berkeley Police Department Policy 319, Hate Crimes](https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/RELEASE%5F20240301%5FT161429%5FBerkeley%20PD%20Policy%20Manual.pdf?ref=berkeleyscanner.com), specifically 319.5 - Criminal Statutes, directs officers to consider disability bias, including whether a perpetrator perceived a person with a disability as vulnerable or as a target because of that disability. These provisions warrant full consideration; BSPED does not presume that a hate crime has been legally established. 1. **Denial of Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE /** [**IDEA**](https://sites.ed.gov/idea/statute-chapter-33/subchapter-ii/1412?ref=berkeleyscanner.com)**)** - Students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) are guaranteed a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in a safe environment. A district that permits an environment where disabled students are targeted and assaulted outside the school gates fails to provide FAPE, opening the district to state education department complaints, due process hearings, civil lawsuits, and federal oversight. ## BSPED's demands We demand that the Board and Administration immediately address the following critical areas of district responsibility: 1. **Conduct and document a thorough response.** Cooperate with law enforcement. Participate in the investigation to the fullest possible extent on behalf of our children; this is a potential criminal matter, not merely an internal discipline issue. Ensure that the reported assault and related concerns are appropriately investigated, that disability-based bias is considered where evidence warrants, and that all District procedures are followed. Communicate the District's response and process to affected families daily, within legal privacy limits. 2. **Issue an immediate public statement.** BUSD must clearly condemn violence, harassment, and disability-based targeting of students; affirm zero tolerance for such conduct; and explain how students and families may report concerns and obtain support. This statement must not identify the injured student or compromise student privacy and must be posted on the BUSD website, not simply sent to BHS students and families. 3. **Establish immediate safety protections.** - Off-campus violent conduct that originates on campus during school hours which produces documented harm against students strictly warrants expulsion. - Assess risks to the injured student and other students with disabilities, implement campus security protocols, including ending off-campus privileges during Rally Week, Freshman Fridays, or other days — or ending the events entirely — known for student-on-student violence; deploying metal detectors (always); and adding a search procedure for "special" days. Include mandatory contraband checks and active monitoring during dismissal hours to stop students from departing with weapons or projectiles. - Prevent retaliation, and provide access to needed counseling and educational support. Add safety plans for every student with an IEP in secondary schools. Establish immediate, formal safety plans for all targeted or victimized students with IEPs, regardless of grade level, to guarantee their physical safety during school hours, transitions, and dismissal. - Review IEPs to re-evaluate and reinforce FAPE assurances and support services for affected students with disabilities. Ensure that students are not effectively excluded from school or educational opportunities because the District has failed repeatedly to address safety risks and bullying. 1. **Address off-campus incidents with school-related consequences.** Apply [BP](https://berkeley.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Anti-Bullying-BP-5131.2.pdf?ref=berkeleyscanner.com)/[AR](https://www.berkeleyschools.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Anti-Bullying-AR-5131.2.pdf?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) 5131.2 to assess reported conduct outside school grounds when it may affect school safety, attendance, or students' educational experience. Do not dismiss incidents solely because they occurred off campus. 2. **Implement a districtwide disability-safety and inclusion plan.** Work directly with students with disabilities, families, special education representatives, and disability-affinity groups to strengthen supervision, reporting, investigation, staff training, disability awareness, and prevention of recurring violence, harassment and exclusion. Include students across disability categories and educational programs--not only those already represented in existing student organizations or IEPs. 3. **Update policies.** Convene representatives responsible for #5 to review and update Board Policy 5131 (last updated 2019) and Administrative Policy 5131 (last updated 2012) to address current conditions. 4. **Report measurable progress and accountability**. Provide the Board and community with a written action plan, implementation timeline, and regular updates on reported incidents, response procedures, prevention measures, and their effectiveness, while protecting confidential student information. ## Required response BSPED requests a written response within **5 business days** of receipt of this letter confirming the District's immediate actions, the administrator responsible for implementation, and a timeline for addressing each demand. The safety of students with disabilities is total and not optional. The District's obligation to safety does not exist in degrees and does not end at the school gate. A response limited to expressions of concern, non-committal language on violence reduction, reliance on being out of BUSD jurisdiction, or a general reference to an ongoing investigation will not resolve the systemic issues raised by families herein. BSPED expects BUSD to demonstrate, through specific actions and transparent accountability, that students with disabilities are valued, protected, and fully included in Berkeley public schools. Sincerely, [Berkeley Special Education Parent & Caregiver Group](https://www.bspedparents.org/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) (BSPED) On behalf of participating families and advocates for students with disabilities Kelly Walsh Rivera Lindsay Nofelt Sean Flanagan Sheela Shankar Susan Snyder Cort Worthington Natasha Sandeford Chadd Wolfe Jamila Dunn Vicki Davis Tatiana Guerreiro Ramos Jason Gambatese Andrea Quong Kristy Madrigal Lily Howell Larry Chien Dana Hymel Lisa Haefele Ardel Thomas Myra Bautista Mark Bautista Stéphane Gros Jumia Simmons Eliza Noh Sarah Bowles Nicole Chabot