Butte School District

THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

3300P

Corrective Actions & Punishments Continued

I. PROCEDURES RELATED TO SUSPENSION OR EXPULSION

The District provides all students subject to suspension with the procedural rights stated in II of this policy. The District provides all students subject to expulsion with the procedural rights stated in III of this policy. The additional procedural protections stated in IV apply to students with rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 ( “Section 504”.) Before taking action to suspend or expel any student, an administrator will determine whether the student has a disability qualifying him/her for protection under IDEA or Section 504. Students with rights under IDEA or Section 504 may be suspended or expelled under certain circumstances but the additional procedural requirements of those acts apply.

II. SUSPENSION

Any period of exclusion of twenty (20) consecutive school days or less is a suspension. A principal, building administrator or designee (hereinafter “administrator”) has the authority to suspend a student. A student with IDEA or Section 504 rights may be excluded from school following the procedures stated in this section but only for up to ten (10) school days. IDEA and Section 504 provide additional procedural protections at the 11th day of disciplinary exclusion.

Standard Procedure for Suspension:

Notice will be given to students and parents in a student handbook of conduct that may result in suspension. The student handbook is not an exclusive list of conduct that may result in suspension.
A student’s parent/guardian must be notified of the suspension. Notice will include: An oral or written notice of the student’s conduct; An oral or written explanation of the district’s evidence of the conduct; An opportunity for the student to respond; An oral or written explanation of the proposed suspension including the length of the suspension; and An oral or written notice of any record that will be kept of the suspension.
Efforts by District personnel to contact the parent/guardian prior to suspending the student will be documented. Efforts to inform the parent/guardian of a student leaving the school premises without permission during the school days will be documented. A meeting with the parent/guardian is required either prior to the suspension or prior to the student’s re-admission.
Upon being suspended, a student and/or parent or guardian has the right to an informal conference with the administrator responsible for the suspension. The student and/or parent may question the administrator and any staff members who were involved in the incident. The administrator may question the student and/or parent.

Contested Suspension:

If the matter is not resolved at the informal conference, the student or parent/guardian has the rights stated in the uniform grievance procedure, Policy 3215. A student may be suspended during the period the uniform grievance procedure is completed. The Board is the policy-making body of the school and suspension appeals to that level must be based solely on whether policy has been followed.

Student Credit For School Work Missed During Suspension:

A student who is suspended from school is eligible to make up the school work that he/she has missed in accordance with standards and time limits established by the teachers.

Behavioral Assessment Following Suspension of a IDEA or Section 504 student

Following any period of suspension, a student’s IEP Team or 504 Team must address the student’s behavioral issues. The IEP or 504 Team must complete a behavioral assessment and develop a behavioral intervention plan, if one does not exist, to address the student’s behavior.

Emergency Suspension of a Dangerous Student:

In an emergency, an administrator may suspend a student from school without the procedural protections listed above if the administrator determines the student’s presence at school poses a serious and immediate danger to him/herself, to other persons or to property. As soon as reasonably possible after the emergency suspension the administrator will provide the student the procedural rights of a standard suspension.

III. EXPULSION

Any period of exclusion greater than twenty (20) consecutive school days is an expulsion.

Grounds for Expulsion:

Notice will be given to students and parents in a student handbook of conduct that may result in expulsion. The student handbook is not an exclusive list of conduct that may result in expulsion. Conduct that warrants expulsion includes, but is not limited to:

Physical abuse or threat of any harm to any person;
Continued harassment or intimidation of any person;
Unlawful or unauthorized use, possession, distribution, or sale of drugs (prescribed or non-prescribed), alcoholic beverages, illegal substances, controlled substances or paraphernalia;
Unauthorized possession of objects that are dangerous to persons or property, including guns and other weapons or an object which is or may be used as a weapon;
Use, possession or distribution of any form of explosives;
Destruction of school property;
and Violation of state or federal law.

Standard Procedure for Expulsion:

Expulsion requests must be submitted in writing to the Superintendent by the student’s building administrator and include a completed district form referred to as the “Student Expulsion Hearing Worksheet.” The written expulsion request must include: Full name of student; Birth date of student; A detailed statement of the student’s conduct, including what occurred, when and where it occurred and who observed it; Present status of the student; Last assigned grade, class, and teacher of student; and, The proposed length of time of the expulsion.
The Board has sole authority to expel. The Superintendent has the discretion to:
1. a. Refer the request back to the building level for disciplinary action.
2. b. Appoint a review panel to consider the expulsion request prior to submitting it to the Board.
  1. i. The administrator will present the case for expulsion to the review panel. District personnel may be called upon to provide information.
  2. ii. If a review panel meets it will make a recommendation to the Superintendent at immediately following the meeting. The review panel may refer the expulsion request to a hearing before the Board or refer the matter back to the building level for disciplinary action.
3. c. Submit the request directly to the Board.
Within five (5) days of the panel’s or the Superintendent’s decision to refer the expulsion request to the Board, the Superintendent will mail or deliver to the student’s parent/guardians a copy of the administrator’s written expulsion request, any documents provided to the review panel or the Superintendent and a notice of hearing (hereinafter “Notice.”) The Notice must include a description of the student’s conduct, the disciplinary action the District is proposing including the length of expulsion, the date, time and place of the hearing and the procedure to be followed at the hearing.
A copy of the Notice will also be mailed or delivered to the administrator, full Board and other District personnel or agents at the Superintendent’s discretion.
The hearing will be held no sooner than five (5) business days and no later than fifteen (15) business days from the date of the Notice.
The hearing will be conducted by the Board Chair or any member of the Board appointed by the Chair. The privacy of the student outweighs the right of the public to observe therefore all student expulsion matters will be closed to the public. A meeting may be open to the public upon request of the parent/guardian or student of legal age to the extent the privacy rights of other students can be protected.
The Board will follow a fair, open process but formal judicial rules of evidence or procedure do not apply in expulsion proceedings. The Chair of the hearing will rule on the record on all matters affecting the conduct of the hearing. The decision will be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing.
The Board will announce its decision in an open meeting at the conclusion hearing.
The Board’s regular secretary will take notes or minutes of the proceeding in the usual and customary manner. The expulsion hearing will be recorded by tape recording. A written transcription of the hearing is not required unless the parent/guardian or student requests a transcript. The cost of the transcription will be paid by the parent/guardian or student who requests the transcript.
If requested by the student or parent/guardian, the Board will issue a written decision within a reasonable period of time after the conclusion of the hearing.

IV. ADDITIONAL PROCEDURAL PROTECTIONS APPLICABLE TO STUDENTS QUALIFIED UNDER IDEA OR SECTION 504

Students with rights under IDEA or Section 504 may be suspended for up to ten (10) school days during the school year following the procedures stated in II. If an administrator proposes suspension for more than ten (10) days or proposes expulsion, the District must follow all procedural requirements of IDEA and Section 504 in addition to the standard procedures stated in II or III above.

The District is not required to provide services to a student during periods of suspension less than ten (10) days during a school year. Beginning with the 11th day of removal during a school year, educational services must be provided to the student. The student’s IEP or 504 plan must be modified if the removal results in a change in placement. If removal does not result in a change of placement, school personnel, in consultation with the student’s special education teacher or 504 team, may determine the services to be provided.

A change in placement occurs if the removal from the current placement is for more than ten (10) consecutive days or the student has been subject to a series of removals that constitute a pattern of changed placement. The services to be provided must enable the student to appropriately progress in the general curriculum and appropriately advance toward achieving the goals in the IEP.

Additional Procedures under IDEA and Section 504:

1. In addition to any oral or written notifications required by the District in II or III, a written notice of procedural safeguards applicable to IDEA or Section 504 must be provided to the parent/guardian or student of legal age.

2 Before a change in placement may occur, the IEP or 504 Team must make a manifestation determination review to determine whether the student’s misbehavior is a manifestation of the student’s disability.

a.   If the IEP or 504 Team determines the behavior is a manifestation of the disability no change in placement may occur unless the behavior involves weapons or drugs or is likely to cause injury.
     i.   For a student with IDEA rights whose behavior is a manifestation of his/her disability but involves weapons, drugs or is likely to cause injury, the IEP Team may change the student’s placement to an interim alternative education setting for up to 45 days.
  ii.   For a student with Section 504 rights whose behavior is a manifestation of his/her disability but involves weapons or is likely to cause injury, the 504 team may change the students placement to an interim alternative education setting for up to 45 days. A Section 504 student who is currently engaging in the illegal use of drugs/alcohol is subject to the disciplinary procedures stated in Section II or III. b.   For a student with IDEA rights, if the IEP Team determines the behavior is not a manifestation of the disability, regular disciplinary consequences may be applied to the student, except that the student must continue to be provided a free appropriate public education as determined by the IEP Team. c. For a student with 504 rights, if the 504 Team determines the behavior is not a manifestation of the 504 disabling condition, regular disciplinary consequences may be applied to the student. d.   A parent/guardian or student of legal age may appeal a finding that the misbehavior was not a manifestation of the disability. For a student with IDEA rights, the hearing is expedited before a special education hearing officer who applies the same standards as the IEP Team. For a student with Section 504 rights, an expedited hearing must be provided in compliance with school policy.

Legal Reference:
20 U.S.C. 1400, et seq. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
29 U.S.C. 794 Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
§ 20-4-302, MCA   Discipline and Punishment of Pupils; Definition of Corporal Punishment; Penalty; Defense
§ 20-4-402, MCA   Duties of District Superintendent or County High School Principal
§ 20-5-105, MCA   Attendance Officer – Powers and Duties
§ 20-5-106, MCA   Truancy
§ 20-5-201, MCA   Duties and Sanctions
§ 20-5-202, MCA   Suspension and Expulsion
20 CFR 300.121
20 CFR 300.519-526, 530, 534

Procedure History:
Promulgated on: 10/18/04
Revised on: 07/19/10