SECTION 1.  Section 37O of chapter 71 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2010 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the third paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following:-

“Bullying”, the repeated use by one or more students of a written, verbal or electronic expression or a physical act or gesture or any combination thereof, directed at a victim because of gender, race, age, religion, sexual orientation, physical appearance, physical or cognitive abilities, physical or mental disabilities, education level, socioeconomic factors, illnesses, ethnic or cultural background, or any other characteristic that: (i) causes physical or emotional harm to the victim or damage to the victim’s property; (ii) places the victim in reasonable fear of harm to himself or of damage to his property; (iii) creates a hostile environment at school for the victim; (iv) infringes on the rights of the victim at school; or (v) materially and substantially disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school. For the purposes of this section, bullying shall include cyber-bullying.