Appellant sought reversal of decisions of the Board of Directors of the Hubbard-Radcliffe Community School District made on March 18 and April 15, 2002, which denied her open enrollment applications for her son, Jeremy Brickhouse. On or about Monday, October 1, 2001, Jeremy was attending his co-ed physical education class with about 10 other male students, some of whom were fellow freshman classmates; the rest were juniors and seniors. The physical education class met every day. At the end of the class on October 1, the boys were in the locker room but the physical education teacher was not present. One of the junior boys in the class grabbed Jeremy and restrained him on a bench in the locker room. One of the senior boys was asked if he was done "taking a dump" and the senior's response was "I'm done." While the junior boy continued to restrain Jeremy, the senior boy came out of the restroom stall and, with his bare posterior and scrotum exposed and visible to Jeremy, began backing up toward Jeremy. Jeremy was able to free his feet from the bench to kick the senior boy's posterior away as he backed up toward Jeremy. Jeremy believed that the senior boy had feces on his posterior, after having a bowel movement and then purposely not wiping the feces away.

After Jeremy escaped the "hair bare" attempt on October 1, 2001, an upper classman threatened that if he told anyone, "things would get worse." Jeremy did not tell any adults about the incident that day. The next day, on October 2, 2001, Jeremy once again had physical education class. In the locker room after the class, the upper classmen told Jeremy that there were two ways out of the locker room. He had a choice between another "hair bare" and going into the locker room's trash can. Jeremy did not want to do either of those choices, but he chose the trash can. Once again, the upper classmen restrained him; one of them held the trash can sideways while another grabbed his legs and thrust his head into the trash can. They told Jeremy that he had to repeat the words, "I'm lost" five times before they would take his head out of the trash can. Jeremy did as he was told. The upper classmen took him out of the trash can, but did not let him take a shower or clean his face in the locker room before he had to go to his next class. Jeremy was again threatened that if he told anyone, "things would get worse." Jeremy went to the drinking fountain and wiped off his face the best he could, then he returned to regular classes. Jeremy did not tell anyone about either incident. He withdrew from school the next week.

On March 14, 2002, Ms. Brickhouse filed an open enrollment application for Jeremy to attend Eldora-New Providence for the remainder of the 2001-2002 school year. On March 18, 2002, the Hubbard-Radcliffe Community School District's Board voted to deny the open enrollment application because it was filed after the January 1 deadline. On that night, Jeremy finally told his mother, with a good deal of emotion, about the "hair bare" attempt and the trash can incident that had happened over five months earlier in October 2001. Ms. Brickhouse immediately called a board member and filed another open enrollment application. On April 15, 2002, the Hubbard-Radcliffe Board met and considered Ms. Brickhouse's second open enrollment application for Jeremy to go to Eldora-New Providence, this time during the 2002-2003 school year. The Board members voted 3 to 2 to deny Jeremy's second open enrollment application because it was filed late. The next day, on April 16, 2002, Ms. Brickhouse filed appeals of the Hubbard-Radcliffe Board of Education's denials of her two open enrollment applications for Jeremy.

We conclude that the facts in Jeremy's situation satisfy the six principles that the State Board has set forth to guide districts in making decisions regarding open enrollment applications where student harassment is alleged. Although we do not condone any verbal or physical harassment of students, we conclude that the Hubbard-Radcliffe students' treatment of Jeremy was "beyond typical adolescent cruelty." The incidents described in the record, which included name-calling, physical restraint, and attempted physical contact of a particularly degrading nature, are beyond what any fifteen-year-old could be expected to endure at school. "When students spend their school days feeling frightened, embarrassed and threatened, they are not in an atmosphere which is conducive to learning. Districts have a proactive responsibility to create acceptable norms for student behavior." In re Krystle Peelan, 19 D.o.E. App. Dec. 37, 45(2000).

In conclusion, we believe that the Van Bemmel principles as applied to Jeremy's situation constitute a case of such unique proportion that justice and fairness require the State Board to exercise its extraordinary power under ?282.18(18)(2001) in the best interest of Jeremy Brickhouse.

That the decisions of the Board of Directors of the Hubbard-Radcliffe Community School District made on March 18 and April 15, 2002 were reversed.