Excellence: it takes everyone!
Required Postings
- Accessibility Statement
- Complaint Procedures
- Employee Code of Conduct
- Nondiscrimination in District programs and activities
- Suicide Prevention Policy
- Title IX and Gender Equity
- Uniform Complaints and Williams Act Complaints
Accessibility Statement
It is the goal of Gilroy Unified School District that the information on our websites be accessible to individuals with visual, hearing or cognitive disabilities.
Good faith efforts have been made to ensure that our site complies with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, set forth by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to the best of our technical ability.
The majority of pages in our site are available in HTML format, which can be deciphered by screen readers. Some documents are in Adobe PDF format, which require Adobe Acrobat Reader to view. If you do not already have Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer, you can download it for free from the Adobe website. Some features on this site may require the Adobe Flash Player to view. If you don’t have the Adobe Flash Player, please visit the Adobe website. to download it.
We've worked hard on our website but are still working towards compliance, particularly with PDF documents. If you find any issues, please contact us.
As part of Gilroy Unified School District’s commitment to Accessibility, we have adopted a leading-edge Web Accessibility solution called AudioEye. AudioEye's toolbar helps ensure that our websites are optimized to provide users with an accessible experience by conforming to WCAG 2.0 Level AA guidelines. In addition, the AudioEye technology includes a toolbar, which includes a suite of free assistive web personalization utilities that allow our users to customize their unique user experience to meet their needs. Click here to learn more about AudioEye.
If you are unable to access any page or pages on our site, please email Melanie Corona, Public Information Officer, at melanie.corona@gilroyunified.org with detailed information on the location of the page or document you were attempting to access or complete this form. Be sure to include your name, email address and phone number so that we may contact you to provide the information in another format.
Please note that some pages on the Gilroy Unified School District websites contain links to third-party sites, which are not within our control and may not comply with accessibility standards. The Gilroy Unified School District is not responsible for the content or accessibility of third-party sites.
If you enjoyed using our website, or if you had trouble with any part of it, please let us know. We will work with you to resolve the issue or provide information in an alternate format. You can reach us at (669) 205-4095.
Complaint Procedures
The Gilroy Unified School District and the Board of Trustees believes that the quality of the educational program can improve when the district listens to complaints, considers differences of opinion, and resolves disagreements through an established, objective process.
The Board encourages complainants to resolve problems early and informally whenever possible. Issues/complains about a school or school personnel should start by contacting an Administrator at the school. If a problem remains unresolved, the individual should submit a formal complaint via a Universal Complaint Form, as early as possible.
Individual Board members do not have authority to resolve complaints. If approached directly with a complaint, however, Board members should listen to the complaint and show their concern by referring the complainant to the Superintendent or designee so that the problem may receive proper consideration.
Employee Code of Conduct
Nondiscrimination in District programs and activities
The Gilroy Unified School District prohibits discrimination, intimidation, harassment (including sexual harassment) or bullying based on a person’s actual or perceived ancestry, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, immigration status, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or association with a person or a group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. For questions or complaints, contact Equity Compliance Officer, Title IX Coordinator and Section 504 Coordinator: Paul Winslow, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent, Human Resources, 7810 Arroyo Circle, (669) 205-4000.
Suicide Prevention Policy
Gilroy Unified School District wants to keep all students safe. We have people who can help if you are not feeling okay. We work together with the county mental health plan so students can get free help if they need it. We can help all students, including those who:
- Feel sad or depressed;
- Feel anxious or upset;
- Have lost someone to suicide;
- Are disabled;
- Have mental illness;
- Have substance use disorders;
- Are homeless or in out-of-home settings like foster care; or
- Who are LGBTQ
To keep students healthy and prevent self-harm, Gilroy Unified School District uses Second Step at the K-5 level and OLWEUS at the 6-12 level, to teach students:
- To be mindful of their self and their feelings;
- How to be kind to everyone;
- How to make good decisions;
- What to do if someone is being mean or a bully;
- How to ask for help;
- How to get help for others; and
- How to cope with stress and trauma
If you need help or someone to talk to, you can ask a school staff person for help. School staff can only help within the authorization and scope of their credential or license. Only those with the right training and license can diagnose or treat mental illness. Every staff person, however, must be kind and caring.
School Staff are trained by experts to help:
- Look for students who are in crisis or display warning signs;
- Find the right mental health services at school and outside school; and Refer students and families to those services.
- If School staff hear or see any warning signs, they will ask a staff member to help the student. Any student who is in crisis will not be left alone. The site administrator will decide the risk of harm and how best to help the student.
If students try to hurt themselves at school, staff will:
- Remain calm and let the site administrator know what is happening; Get emergency medical services for the student;
- Be caring and stay with the student until help arrives; Offer help to the student and their family; and
- Help the student come back to school when they are ready.
If students try to hurt themselves away from school, staff will:
- Let the Principal know what is happening;
- Offer help to the student and their family; and
- Help the student come back to school when they are ready.
After a student has, or knows someone who has had, a crisis, staff will:
- Share what happened with only those who need to know;
- Make a plan with the family to help the student;
- Help the student make up any missed work;
- Be caring and help the student in school; and
- Follow up with the student and family often to see what help is needed.
If someone dies by suicide staff will:
- Send a team of mental health personnel to the school to help anyone who is in need, and
- Offer help to any families who are in need.
If any student ever needs help, they can:
- Ask any staff person for help;
- Call Crisis Hotline at 988; or
- Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255
Title IX and Gender Equity
Federal Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”), implemented at 34 C.F.R. § 106.31, subd. (a), provides that no person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any academic, extracurricular, research, occupational training, or other education program or activity operated by a recipient which receives federal financial assistance. Title IX requires the Gilroy Unified School District (GUSD) to take immediate and appropriate action to investigate when it knows or reasonably should know of a possible Title IX violation.
In the event of a complaint regarding gender equity or sexual harassment, or discrimination, including harassment, intimidation and bullying because of actual or perceived disability, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, nationality, race, ethnicity, color, ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital or parental status, or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics, contact the Title IX Compliance Coordinator, Paul Winslow.
What is Title IX?
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 protects people from discrimination based on sex in education programs and activities that receive federal assistance. The Title IX regulation describes the conduct that violates Title IX. Examples of the types of discrimination that are covered under title IX include sexual harassment, the failure to provide equal opportunity in athletics, and discrimination based on pregnancy. To enforce Title IX, the US Department of Education maintains an Office for Civil Rights, with headquarters in Washington, DC and 23 offices across the United States. Source: US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights. (2015). Title IX and Sex Discrimination
In accordance to California Education Code 221.6, public schools that receive funds and are subject to the requirements of Title IX, shall post in a prominent and conspicuous location on their Internet websites all of the following:
The rights of a pupil and the public and the responsibilities of the school district under Title IX, which shall include, but shall not be limited to, Internet Web links to information about those rights and responsibilities located on the Internet Web sites of the department’s Office for Equal Opportunity and the United States Department of Education Office of Civil Rights, and the list of rights specified in Section 221.8.
- US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights
- Office of US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- An overview of the Uniform Complaint Procedures may be found in the Gilroy Unified School District Board Policies, BP 1312.3 – Community Relations: Uniform Complaint Procedures. A description of how to file a complaint under Title IX, may be found under AR 1312.2 – Community Relations: Uniform Complaint Procedures.
Further information may be found through the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (click here).
Student Rights pursuant to Education Code Section 221.8
Education Code section 221.8 provides as follows:
The following list of rights, which are based on the relevant provisions of the federal regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1681 et seq.), may be used by the department for purposes of Section 221.6:
a. You have the right to fair and equitable treatment and you shall not be discriminated against based on your sex.
b. You have the right to be provided with an equitable opportunity to participate in all academic extracurricular activities, including athletics.
c. You have the right to inquire of the athletic director of your school as to the athletic opportunities offered by the school.
d. You have the right to apply for athletic scholarships.
e. You have the right to receive equitable treatment and benefits in the provision of all of the following:
- Equipment and supplies.
- Scheduling of games and practices.
- Transportation and daily allowances.
- Access to tutoring.
- Coaching.
- Locker rooms.
- Practice and competitive facilities.
- Medical and training facilities and services.
- Publicity.
f. You have the right to have access to a gender equity coordinator to answer questions regarding gender equity laws.
g. You have the right to contact the State Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation to access information on gender equity laws.
h. You have the right to file a confidential discrimination complaint with the United States Office of Civil Rights or the State Department of Education if you believe you have been discriminated against or if you believe you have received unequal treatment on the basis of your sex.
i. You have the right to pursue civil remedies if you have been discriminated against.
j. You have the right to be protected against retaliation if you file a discrimination complaint.
Forms and Resources
Uniform Complaints and Williams Act Complaints
The Gilroy Unified School District has the primary responsibility to ensure compliance with applicable state and federal laws and regulations and has established procedures to address allegations of unlawful discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying, and complaints alleging violation of state or federal laws governing educational programs and the charging of unlawful pupil fees.
GUSD shall investigate and seek to resolve complaints using policies and procedures known as the Uniform Complaint Procedures (UCP) adopted by our Board of Trustees. Unlawful discrimination, harassment, intimidations or bullying complaints may be based on actual or perceived age, ancestry, color, ethnic group identification, gender expression, gender identity, gender, disability, nationality, national origin, race or ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or on a person's association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics, in any program or activity that receives or benefits from state financial assistance.
The UCP shall also be used when addressing complaints alleging failure to comply with state and/or federal laws in Adult Education, Consolidated Categorical Aid Programs, Migrant Education, Career Technical and Technical Education and Training Programs, Child Care and Developmental Programs, Child Nutrition Programs, Special Education Programs and Safety Planning Requirements.
Contact
Documentation to file a Universal Complaint, Williams Act complaint, or Title IX complaint, can be directed to Paul Winslow, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources (669-205-4000).