Out-of-School Suspension
The board delegates to its administrators the authority to suspend a student from a teacher’s class or from the school, not in excess of 10 days for any one offense and for not more than 30 days in any one school year. No administrator may suspend a student from school during the last 10 days of the school year if the suspension will make the student ineligible to receive credit for the school year without the approval of the board unless the presence of the student constitutes an actual threat to a class or a school, or a hearing is granted within 24-hours of the suspension.
When a student is suspended from a class or a school, the administrator will notify, in writing, the parents/legal guardians of the student, giving the reason for suspension and setting a time and place when an administrator will be available for a conference with the parents/legal guardians. The conference will be set within three days of the date of the suspension.
After the conference with the school administrator, the parents/legal guardians may appeal the suspension to the superintendent or his/her designee. The request for an appeal hearing must be submitted in writing within 10 days of the date of the conference with the administrator. The request must state the basis of the appeal, in particular the perceived error in judgment or in procedure by the school administrator, and summarize the supporting evidence. The superintendent or his/her designee will meet with the parents/legal guardian within 10 days of the receipt of the written appeal and will provide a decision in writing within 10 days of hearing the appeal.
After the hearing with the superintendent or his/her designee, the parents/legal guardians may request an appeal to the board. The request must be submitted in writing to the board chairman within 10 days from the date set forth on the superintendent’s or his/her designee’s decision letter. The request must outline the basis of the appeal, in particular the perceived error in judgment or in procedure by the school administrator, and summarize the supporting evidence. After considering the request, the board may or may not grant an appeal hearing. If the board grants a hearing, it must occur within 30 days of the day the board voted to hear the appeal.
Out-of-school suspensions will be construed to prohibit a student from entering the school or school grounds, except for a pre-arranged conference with an administrator, attending any day or night school functions or riding a school bus.
In all cases of out-of-school suspension, every effort must be made to notify the parents/legal guardians immediately and to take due precautions in dismissing the student from school. The student normally will either be released into the custody of a parent/legal guardian or at the regular school closing time with any normal school transportation provided. Whenever a student who is classified as having a disability commits a suspendable offense, the principal or his/her designee will confer with Special Services before initiating suspension procedures.