WAC 392-187-020

(1) Scope of the complaint. Any student who is enrolled in the school district, or a parent or legal guardian who has a student enrolled in the school district, may file a limited or broad complaint with the office of superintendent of public instruction. A person residing within the boundaries of the school district may file a broad complaint with the office of superintendent of public instruction. A limited or a broad complaint may be filed against a local school district superintendent, a local school district board of directors, or an individual member or members of a board of directors. The complaint must allege willful noncompliance with one or more of the following state laws:

(a) State civil rights and nondiscrimination, including the nondiscrimination and sexual equality laws and model policy and procedure requirements related to protecting students' rights as established in chapters 28A.640 and 28A.642 RCW;

(b) Harassment, intimidation, or bullying requirements as established in RCW 28A.600.477;

(c) Curriculum requirements as described in RCW 28A.150.230, 28A.300.475, and 28A.320.170; the policies and procedures related to the selection or deletion of instructional materials required in RCW 28A.320.230; and the review and removal of supplemental instructional materials required in RCW 28A.320.235;

(d) The use of restraint or isolation on a student as described in RCW 28A.600.485; or

(e) Student discipline as described in chapter 28A.600 RCW.

(2) Exhaustion requirements. Before any person may file a complaint under this chapter, the person must exhaust existing complaint procedures if such procedures exist. If no complaint procedures are available, the person who intends to file the complaint must provide notice of the complaint to the local school district superintendent at least 30 calendar days before filing the complaint with the office of superintendent of public instruction.

(3) Complaint process.

(a) Complaints may be submitted to the office of superintendent of public instruction by mail, electronic mail, or hand delivery within 30 calendar days of a final decision reached by the local school district or other complaint procedure if such procedures exist.

(b) A complaint must be in writing and include:

(i) A description of the specific acts, conditions, or circumstances alleged to violate the state laws enumerated in WAC 392-187-010(4) and the facts on which the complaint is based;

(ii) The name and contact information, including a mailing address, of the complainant;

(iii) The name and title of the local school district superintendent, local school district board of directors, or an individual member or members of a board of directors alleged to have engaged in willful noncompliance;

(iv) A copy of any complaints filed and responses received under complaint procedures utilized by the complainant to resolve the complaint prior to filing with the office of superintendent of public instruction or a copy of the notice of the complaint sent to the local school district superintendent prior to filing with the office of superintendent of public instruction.

(c) The office of superintendent of public instruction will make an initial determination as to whether the complaint reasonably contains enough facts to allege noncompliance with the state laws as defined in WAC 392-187-010(4) and whether other available complaint procedures have been exhausted. If the complaint contains sufficient facts to allege noncompliance with state laws and meets the procedural requirements of this section, the office of superintendent of public instruction will investigate the allegations in the complaint. The office of superintendent of public instruction will provide written notice of the allegations being investigated. If the requirements are not met, the office of superintendent of public instruction will dismiss the complaint and notify the complainant and the school district superintendent. If the complaint is dismissed, the office of superintendent of public instruction is not required to investigate further.