[St. Paul, MN] The Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR) today announced a settlement agreement with Pine City Public Schools after finding multiple students repeatedly bullied and harassed a seventh grader because of her race. Pine City Public Schools violated the Minnesota Human Rights Act by failing to timely and appropriately stop the racial harassment.

“Children deserve the opportunity to thrive, socially and academically, in school,” said Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero. “Today’s announcement serves as a reminder to schools across the state of their legal responsibilities under the Minnesota Human Rights Act to proactively prevent and stop harassment and discrimination.” 

Pine City Public Schools

MDHR’s investigation uncovered that a seventh grader was repeatedly intimidated, bullied, and harassed for months because of her race by more than ten students during the 2020-2021 school year. The student and her parents persistently reported the harassment to school leaders.

As a result of the ongoing harassment and Pine City Public Schools’ failure to resolve it, the seventh grader was greatly impacted and missed several weeks of school.

MDHR found Pine City Public Schools violated the Minnesota Human Rights Act because the district knew of the harassment and did not take timely and appropriate action to stop it or prevent further harassment from occurring. For instance, the district failed to follow its own harassment policy that required any employee who received a harassment report to promptly notify the superintendent. Any attempts Pine City Public Schools made to address the racial harassment were not effective because it continued.  

MDHR reached a settlement agreement with Pine City Public Schools requiring the district to pay the student $65,000. 

Pine City Public Schools must also make changes to its policies and procedures to prevent future discrimination and harassment. While the events of this case took place during COVID-19, MDHR will monitor the school district’s compliance with the settlement agreement through the 2025- 2026 school year.

Ways schools can take action

When students took the most recent Minnesota Student Survey, 54% reported being bullied in the past month.

To support students and teachers in creating learning environments that are free from discrimination, school districts can take the following actions to prevent and address harassment and bullying:

• Review results from the Minnesota Student Survey to determine what’s working and how school districts can better resolve harassment, bullying, and discrimination.

• Proactively train students, educators, and school leaders on both how to prevent and how to respond to harassment and discrimination.

• Make sure school policies around harassment, bullying, and discrimination are clear and transparent, and that the policies are immediately followed.

• To prevent further harm, provide support to students being harassed and to students engaging in the harassment.

• When possible, work with student groups, nonprofits, and other community members to support students who are experiencing bullying, harassment, and discrimination.

How to report discrimination

If you believe you have been harassed or discriminated against, contact the Minnesota Department of Human Rights by submitting this online form.

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights is the state’s civil rights enforcement agency and is responsible for enforcing the Minnesota Human Rights Act, one of the strongest state civil rights laws in the country.

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