No individual will be denied access to any program or activity sponsored by or conducted on the grounds of the District, solely on the basis of their status as an HIV-infected individual.
Students
It is the policy of the Board that:
A student’s education will not be interrupted or curtailed solely on the basis of their HIV status. HIV-infected students will be afforded the same rights, privileges, and services available to every other student.
No student will be referred to the Committee on Special Education solely on the basis of their HIV status. A student who is infected with HIV will be referred to the Committee on Special Education (CSE) only when the student’s disability interferes with their ability to benefit from instruction. Such referral will be made in accordance with Part 200 of Commissioner’s Regulations.
If a student who is HIV-infected requires special accommodations to enable them to continue to attend school, the student will be referred to the appropriate multi-disciplinary team as required by §504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
No disclosure of HIV-related information involving a student will be made without first obtaining the informed consent of the parent/guardian or student on the Department of Health (DOH) approved form.
Employees
It is the policy of the Board that:
No employees will be prevented from continuing in their employment solely on the basis of their HIV status; such employees are entitled to all rights, privileges and services accorded to other employees and will be entitled to reasonable accommodations to the extent that such accommodations enable such individuals to perform their duties.
No disciplinary action or other adverse action will be taken against an employee solely on the basis of their status as HIV-infected or a person with AIDS. Such action will only be taken where, even with the provision of reasonable accommodations, the individual is unable to perform their duties.
All employees will have access to the District’s exposure control plan as required by the federal Office of Safety and Health Association (OSHA).
In accordance with OSHA regulations, training in universal precautions and infection control will be offered to all employees and will be provided to every employee with potential occupational exposure.
Confidentiality
Any information obtained regarding the HIV status of an individual connected to the school will not be released to third parties, except to those persons who are:
Named on an Authorization for Release of Confidential HIV Related Information form;
Named in a special HIV court order; or
As indicated in Public Health Law §2782, when necessary to provide healthcare to the individual (i.e., to the school physician and the school nurse).
Any employee who breaches the confidentiality of a person who is HIV-infected will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with applicable law and/or collective bargaining agreement.
To protect the confidentiality of an HIV-infected individual, any documents identifying the HIV status of such individuals will be maintained by the authorized individual in a secure file, separate from the individual’s regular file. Access to such file will be granted only to those persons named on the Department of Health approved Authorization for Release of Confidential HIV Related Information Form, or through a special HIV court order. When information is disclosed, a statement prohibiting further re-disclosure, except when in compliance with the law, must accompany the disclosure.
HIV/AIDS Testing
No school official will require a student or employee to undergo an HIV antibody test or other HIV-related test. In accordance with OSHA regulations, in the event of an incident involving the exposure of an individual to potentially infectious body fluids of another individual, particularly blood or any other fluid which contains visible blood, an HIV test may be requested but NOT required. The request and refusal must be documented.
However, school officials will not be precluded from requiring a student or employee to undergo a physical examination pursuant to Education Law §§903 and 913, when other illness is suspected (e.g., tuberculosis), as long as no HIV antibody test or other HIV-related test is administered without the individual’s informed consent as required by Public Health Law §27-F.
To implement this policy, the Superintendent is directed to arrange for staff training, to provide electronic access of this policy to District employees and students, and to establish an advisory council to make recommendations on the development, implementation, and evaluation of HIV/AIDS instruction as a part of comprehensive health education.
Cross-ref: 5420, Student Health Services
Ref: 29 USC §§794 et seq. (Rehabilitation Act of 1973)
20 USC §§1400 et seq. (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)
42 U.S.C. §12132, et seq. (Americans with Disabilities Act)
34 CFR Part 104
29 CFR Part 1910.1030
Executive Law §296 (Human Rights Law)
Education Law §§903;
Public Health Law, Article 27-F
8 NYCRR §§29.1(g); l35.3; 136.3
An Implementation Package for HIV/AIDS Policy in New York State School Districts, NYS HIV/AIDS Prevention Education Program, June 17, 1998
Adoption date: January 23, 2006
Amended date: January 9, 2017
Amended date: January 8, 2024