The Washoe County School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to implement a new policy in the school district banning hazing.

The school board follows the same policy as many universities, including the University of Nevada, Reno. According to this definition, hazing is any activity that causes mental, emotional, or physical harm to a student and involves groups and organizations within the school district, including athletics.

“We already have anti-bullying policies and safe and respectful learning environments, but we also need to address bullying head-on and take a public stand against it,” said Beth Smith, school board president.

You may recall that last year we reported that the school district temporarily suspended all activities of the Galena High School baseball program after a lawsuit was filed over alleged hazing.

A few months earlier, we also reported on a North Valleys High School cheerleader who received an award full of insults from her coach.

“Unfortunately, hazing is still too often seen as ‘boys will be boys’ or ‘girls will be girls’. That is still somewhat accepted and it needs to stop,” said Neil Rombardo, general advisor to the school board during the meeting.

Smith says she agrees this is a discussion that is long overdue, but she is glad they are talking about it now.

After some discussion about the policy, the board decided to continue with it. The focus would not only be on discipline and punishment, but also on teaching students how to improve.

“Our chief legal officer also shared how our counseling department can support not only the students who may have been victims of hazing, but also the students who are committing the hazing, so they can understand why this is not okay,” Smith said.

She says all students in clubs, teams and organizations have the right to safety.

“They deserve to be respected, they shouldn’t be bullied, harassed or teased,” she said. “And today our school district has taken a public stand, so there can be no question what our expectations are.”

This is just the first step in the approval process. The next steps are the mandatory 13-day public review period. The policy is then scheduled for a later meeting for final approval.