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Education for Justice |
FACT SHEET Y-13 |
Fall 2011 |
SCHOOL EXPULSIONS
Minnesota law gives students important rights when they
are being expelled from public school. Every
public school has to have a discipline policy that is “prevention-oriented.” In other words, the policy must focus on
finding problems and trying to deal with them before discipline happens. Schools must also follow the state’s
discipline law, called the Pupil Fair Dismissal Act.
WHEN CAN A STUDENT BE DISCIPLINED?
A student can be disciplined for
any of the following reasons:
·
Breaking school rules
School
boards make rules that students must follow.
The rules must be clear and the student must have known about them. Usually, the rules are in the student/parent
handbook.
·
Significantly disrupting the rights of others
to an education
Students
are not allowed to disrupt classes, after-school programs, sports, or other
school functions. A student who disrupts
school or school events can be disciplined.
·
Being a danger to yourself or others or
school property
Students
are not allowed to do things that put themselves or others in danger, or that
damage property. Examples include fighting,
hitting, throwing or breaking objects, and threatening to hurt others or
yourself.
In all cases, the behavior leading to the
discipline must have been willful (or on purpose) in order for the student to
be disciplined.
WILL THE
STUDENT BE EXPELLED?
Expulsion is one
type of discipline a school can use against a student who breaks the
rules. Usually, students are only
expelled for very serious offenses or for repeat offenses. The most common reasons students are expelled
in
Your student/parent
handbook may say what type of discipline will be used for different rules that
are broken. Read the handbook
carefully. Your student should not be
expelled if the rule they broke does not list expulsion as one of the
punishments.
What are the
student’s rights when the school wants to expel?
Students have many
important rights when they are facing expulsion. An expulsion may not be legal if the school
does not make sure that the student is given these rights:
•
Notice:
Before the school can expel a student, the student and the parent or
guardian must be given a written notice about the school’s plans to expel. The notice must have:
-
the facts about what happened
-
a list of witnesses
-
what the witnesses will say at a hearing
-
the time, date, and place of the hearing
-
what the rights of the student and/or parent are
for the hearing
-
a description of what the school did to try to prevent
the expulsion
-
how to get a list of free and low-cost attorneys
near you
-
a copy of the Pupil Fair Dismissal Act attached
to the notice
If any of
these are not in the notice, parents should ask for them.
•
Right to a
Hearing: A student cannot be expelled without a
hearing, unless the student and parent sign a form waiving (giving up) the
hearing. The school may try very hard to
get you to sign this kind of waiver. But
remember- the hearing is the student’s chance to present his/her side of the
story and to make sure that the school has followed the rules that it has to
follow. Always speak to an attorney before signing anything.
•
Right to Legal
Representation: You have the
right to have someone represent you at the hearing. The school will have an attorney at this
hearing and so should you. The school must tell the parent about free
or low-cost legal help for these hearings.
Call an attorney as soon as possible.
•
Preparing for
the Hearing: You have the right
to look at your school records before the hearing, to present evidence and
witnesses at the hearing, and to cross-examine school witnesses.
•
Right
to a Speedy Hearing: The hearing must take place within 10
days of the school sending the notice of expulsion. If you or the school has a good reason for
needing more time, that deadline can be extended for up to 5 days.
WHAT
HAPPENS AFTER THE HEARING?
The hearing usually happens in front of a hearing officer,
who is like a judge. The hearing officer
makes a recommendation to the school board, but the school board makes the
final decision of whether to expel the student.
The hearing officer’s recommendation must be sent to you within 2 days
after the hearing.
Find out when the school board will meet. If the hearing officer recommends expulsion,
the student and parent can go to the meeting and ask the school district to not
expel or to shorten the length of the expulsion. The school board must make its final decision
in writing, and must give clear reasons for its decision.
WHAT
HAPPENS IF THE STUDENT IS EXPELLED?
•
Length of
Expulsion: Expulsion
means that the student is not allowed to go to the school for up to 12
months. The school board can expel the
student for less then 12 months, but it is illegal
for a student to be expelled for more than 12 months, unless they brought a gun
to school.
•
Alternative
Education: Schools still have to educate expelled
students. Expelled students have a right
to get “alternative educational services.”
This may be things like enrollment in an Alternative Learning Center
(ALC) or schooling at home that is supervised by a teacher. The services must be designed to make sure
that the student keeps making progress towards graduation and to prepare the
student for coming back to the school after the expulsion is over.
•
Enrolling in
Other Districts: It is important to know that if a student
has been expelled they are not automatically stopped from going to school in a
different school district. The school
district that expelled them cannot expel them from other districts. A different school district can only keep an
expelled student from enrolling through a procedure called exclusion. Exclusion cannot last past the end of the
school year. See our fact sheet Y-11
Student Discipline.
ARE THERE
OTHER OPTIONS FOR STUDENTS FACING EXPULSION?
Schools may offer
you a deal or alternative to expulsion. It is best to talk to an attorney before
accepting an offer, and to consider the terms of the offer carefully.
Some of the benefits
that a deal may include are:
·
The
school agrees to take anything about the proposed expulsion off the student’s
record.
·
The
school agrees to provide educational services.
Some of the risks of making a deal are:
·
you
would give up your right to a hearing
·
you may have
trouble finding a school for the student
Administrative Transfers: One alternative that may come up is called an Administrative
Transfer. This is when the student is
transferred to another school. Sometimes
a school offers an Administrative Transfer as an alternative to expulsion. Sometimes the school tells the parent that
the student is going to be transferred.
It is often done to avoid expulsion and the expulsion process. In either case, if a parent hears this from
their child’s school they should get legal help right away.
In Hennepin County call the Youth Law Project at (612)
334-5970. Or call your local legal aid
office.
WHAT
SHOULD I DO TO KEEP MY CHILD IN SCHOOL?
If your student is
facing expulsion, keep these tips in mind:
·
Talk to an
attorney. If you live in
·
Keep copies of everything you get. Keep a written record of all phone
conversations, notices, and mail from the school and school district. Make sure everything has the date, time, and
the person you spoke to. Make copies of
everything you give to the school.
·
Know your
rights. The rights you have that are
listed in this fact sheet are based on what is called your constitutional right
to due process. It is important that you
know them, and that you insist that they are followed.
·
Make sure
that your child gets alternative educational services. Students are usually suspended first and then
expelled. The school has to start giving
educational services after the 5th day of suspension. Make sure this happens, and work with the
school to make sure that they are doing enough to help the student make
educational progress.
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the fact sheets mentioned in this document, go to www.lawhelpmn.org/LASMfactsheets.