General Conduct Violations

The categories of conduct below are prohibited at school and all school-related activities, but the list does not include the most serious offenses. In the subsequent sections on Suspension, DAEP Placement, Placement and/or Expulsion for Certain Serious Offenses, and Expulsion, severe offenses that require or permit specific consequences are listed. Any offense, however, may be serious enough to result in Removal from the Regular Educational Setting as detailed in that section.

Disregard for Authority

Students shall not:

· Fail to comply with directives given by school personnel (insubordination).

· Leave school grounds or school-sponsored events without permission.

· Disobey rules for conduct on school buses.

· Refuse to accept discipline management techniques assigned by a teacher or principal.

Mistreatment of Others

Students shall not:

· Use profanity or vulgar language or make obscene gestures.

· Fight or scuffle. (For assault see DAEP Placement and Expulsion)

· Threaten a district student, employee, or volunteer, including off school property if the conduct causes a substantial disruption to the educational environment.

· Engage in bullying, harassment, or making hit lists. (See glossary for all three terms)

· Engage in conduct that constitutes sexual harassment or sexual abuse, whether by word, gesture, or any other conduct, directed toward another person, including a district student, employee, or volunteer.

· Engage in conduct that constitutes dating violence, including the intentional use of physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional abuse to harm, threaten, intimidate, or control another person with whom the student has or has had a dating relationship.

· Engage in inappropriate or indecent exposure of private body parts.

· Participate in hazing. (See glossary)

· Cause an individual to act through the use of or threat of force (coercion).

· Commit extortion or blackmail (obtaining money or an object of value from an unwilling person).

· Engage in inappropriate verbal, physical, or sexual conduct directed toward another person, including a district student, employee, or volunteer.

· Record the voice or image of another without the prior consent of the individuals being recorded or in any way that disrupts the educational environment or invades the privacy of others.

Property Offenses

Students shall not:

· Damage or vandalize property owned by others. (For felony criminal mischief see DAEP Placement or Expulsion)

· Deface or damage school property—including textbooks, lockers, furniture, and other equipment—with graffiti or by other means.

· Steal from students, staff, or the school.

· Commit or assist in a robbery or theft even if it does not constitute a felony according to the Texas Penal Code. (For felony robbery and theft see DAEP Placement and Expulsion)

Possession of Prohibited Items

Students shall not:

· Possess or use:

· fireworks of any kind, smoke or stink bombs, or any other pyrotechnic device;

· a razor, box cutter, chain, or any other object used in a way that threatens or inflicts bodily injury to another person;

· a “look-alike” weapon;

· an air gun or BB gun;

· ammunition;

· a stun gun;

· a pocketknife or any other small knife;

· mace or pepper spray;

· pornographic material;

· tobacco products;

· matches or a lighter;

· a laser pointer for other than an approved use; or

· any articles not generally considered to be weapons, including school supplies, when the principal or designee determines that a danger exists. (For weapons and firearms see DAEP Placement and Expulsion)

Possession of Telecommunications Devices

Students shall not:

· Display, turn on, or use a cellular telephone or other telecommunications device on school property during the school day.

Illegal, Prescription, and Over-the-Counter Drugs

Students shall not:

· Possess or sell seeds or pieces of marijuana in less than a usable amount. (For illegal drugs, alcohol, and inhalants see DAEP Placement and Expulsion)

· Possess, use, give, or sell paraphernalia related to any prohibited substance. (See glossary for “paraphernalia”)

· Possess or sell look-alike drugs or attempt to pass items off as drugs or contraband.

· Abuse the student’s own prescription drug, give a prescription drug to another student, or possess or be under the influence of another person’s prescription drug on school property or at a school-related event. (See glossary for “abuse”)

· Abuse over-the-counter drugs. (See glossary for “abuse”)

· Be under the influence of prescription or over-the-counter drugs that cause impairment of the physical or mental faculties. (See glossary for “under the influence”)

· Have or take prescription drugs or over-the-counter drugs at school other than as provided by district policy.

Misuse of Computers and the Internet

Students shall not:

· Violate computer use policies, rules, or agreements signed by the student or the student’s parent.

· Attempt to access or circumvent passwords or other security-related information of the district, students, or employees or upload or create computer viruses, including off school property if the conduct causes a substantial disruption to the educational environment.

· Attempt to alter, destroy, or disable district computer equipment, district data, the data of others, or other networks connected to the district’s system, including off school property if the conduct causes a substantial disruption to the educational environment.

· Use the Internet or other electronic communications to threaten district students, employees, or volunteers, including off school property if the conduct causes a substantial disruption to the educational environment.

· Send or post electronic messages that are abusive, obscene, sexually oriented, threatening, harassing, damaging to another’s reputation, or illegal, including off school property if the conduct causes a substantial disruption to the educational environment.

· Use e-mail or Web sites at school to encourage illegal behavior or threaten school safety.

Safety Transgressions

Students shall not:

· Possess published or electronic material that is designed to promote or encourage illegal behavior or that could threaten school safety.

· Engage in verbal (oral or written) exchanges that threaten the safety of another student, a school employee, or school property.

· Make false accusations or perpetrate hoaxes regarding school safety.

· Engage in any conduct that school officials might reasonably believe will substantially disrupt the school program or incite violence.

· Throw objects that can cause bodily injury or property damage.

· Discharge a fire extinguisher without valid cause.

Miscellaneous Offenses

Students shall not:

· Violate dress and grooming standards as communicated in the student handbook.

· Cheat or copy the work of another.

· Gamble.

· Falsify records, passes, or other school-related documents.

· Engage in actions or demonstrations that substantially disrupt or materially interfere with school activities.

· Repeatedly violate other communicated campus or classroom standards of conduct.

The district may impose campus or classroom rules in addition to those found in the Code. These rules may be posted in classrooms or given to the student and may or may not constitute violations of the Code.

Discipline Management Techniques

Discipline will be designed to improve conduct and to encourage students to adhere to their responsibilities as members of the school community. Disciplinary action will draw on the professional judgment of teachers and administrators and on a range of discipline management techniques. Discipline will be correlated to the seriousness of the offense, the student’s age and grade level, the frequency of misbehavior, the student’s attitude, the effect of the misconduct on the school environment, and statutory requirements.

Because of these factors, discipline for a particular offense (unless otherwise specified by law) may bring into consideration varying techniques and responses.

Students with Disabilities

The discipline of students with disabilities is subject to applicable state and federal law in addition to the Student Code of Conduct. To the extent any conflict exists, state and/or federal law will prevail.

In accordance with the Education Code, a student who is enrolled in a special education program may not be disciplined for conduct meeting the definition of bullying, harassment, or making hit lists (see glossary) until an ARD committee meeting has been held to review the conduct.

In deciding whether to order suspension, DAEP placement, or expulsion, the district will take into consideration a disability that substantially impairs the student’s capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student’s conduct.

Techniques

The following discipline management techniques may be used—alone or in combination—for behavior prohibited by the Student Code of Conduct or by campus or classroom rules:

· Verbal correction, oral or written.

· Cooling-off time or “time-out.”

· Seating changes within the classroom.

· Temporary confiscation of items that disrupt the educational process.

· Rewards or demerits.

· Behavioral contracts.

· Counseling by teachers, counselors, or administrative personnel.

· Parent-teacher conferences.

· Grade reductions for cheating, plagiarism, and as otherwise permitted by policy.

· Detention.

· Sending the student to the office or other assigned area, or to in-school suspension.

· Assignment of school duties such as cleaning or picking up litter.

· Withdrawal of privileges, such as participation in extracurricular activities, eligibility for seeking and holding honorary offices, or membership in school-sponsored clubs and organizations.

· Penalties identified in individual student organizations’ extracurricular standards of behavior.

· Withdrawal or restriction of bus privileges.

· School-assessed and school-administered probation.

· Corporal punishment.

· Out-of-school suspension, as specified in the Suspension section of this Code.

· Placement in a DAEP, as specified in the DAEP section of this Code.

· Placement and/or expulsion in an alternative educational setting, as specified in the Placement and/or Expulsion for Certain Serious Offenses section of this Code.

· Expulsion, as specified in the Expulsion section of this Code.

· Referral to an outside agency or legal authority for criminal prosecution in addition to disciplinary measures imposed by the district.

· Other strategies and consequences as determined by school officials.

Notification

The principal or appropriate administrator will notify a student’s parent by phone or in writing of any violation that may result in a suspension, placement in a DAEP, or expulsion. Notification will be made within three school days after the administrator becomes aware of the violation.

Appeals

Parental questions or complaints regarding disciplinary measures should be addressed to the teacher or campus administration, as appropriate, and in accordance with policy FNG(LOCAL). A copy of the policy may be obtained from the principal’s office or the central administration office.

Consequences will not be deferred pending the outcome of a grievance.

Removal from the Regular Educational Setting

In addition to other discipline management techniques, misconduct may result in removal from the regular educational setting in the form of a routine referral or a formal removal.

Routine Referral

A routine referral occurs when a teacher sends a student to the principal’s office as a discipline management technique. The principal may then employ additional techniques.

Formal Removal

A teacher or administrator may remove a student from class for a behavior that violates this Code to maintain effective discipline in the classroom. A teacher may also initiate a formal removal from class if:

1. The student’s behavior has been documented by the teacher as repeatedly interfering with the teacher’s ability to teach his or her class or with the student’s classmates’ ability to learn; or

2. The behavior is so unruly, disruptive, or abusive that the teacher cannot teach, and the students in the classroom cannot learn.

A teacher or administrator must remove a student from class if the student engages in behavior that under the Education Code requires or permits the student to be placed in a DAEP or expelled. When removing for those reasons, the procedures in the subsequent sections on DAEP or expulsion will be followed. Otherwise, within three school days of the formal removal, the appropriate administrator will schedule a conference with the student’s parent; the student; the teacher, in the case of removal by a teacher; and any other administrator.

At the conference, the appropriate administrator will inform the student of the misconduct for which he or she is charged and the consequences. The administrator will give the student an opportunity to give his or her version of the incident.

When a student is removed from the regular classroom by a teacher and a conference is pending, the principal may place the student in:

· Another appropriate classroom

· In-school suspension

· Out-of-school suspension

· DAEP

Returning Student to Classroom

When a student has been formally removed from class by a teacher for conduct against the teacher containing the elements of assault, aggravated assault, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, murder, capital murder, or criminal attempt to commit murder or capital murder, the student may not be returned to the teacher’s class without the teacher’s consent.

When a student has been formally removed by a teacher for any other conduct, the student may be returned to the teacher’s class without the teacher’s consent, if the placement review committee determines that the teacher’s class is the best or only alternative available.

Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) Placement

A student who is expelled for an offense that otherwise would have resulted in a DAEP placement does not have to be placed in DAEP in addition to the expulsion.

In deciding whether to order placement in a DAEP, the district will take into consideration:

1. Self-defense (see glossary),

2. Intent or lack of intent at the time the student engaged in the conduct, and

3. The student’s disciplinary history.

Discretionary Placement: Misconduct That May Result in DAEP Placement

A student may be placed in a DAEP for behaviors prohibited in the General Conduct Violations section of this Code.

Misconduct Identified in State Law

In accordance with state law, a student may be placed in a DAEP for any one of the following offenses:

· Involvement in a public school fraternity, sorority, or secret society, including participating as a member or pledge, or soliciting another person to become a pledge or member of a public school fraternity, sorority, secret society, or gang. (See glossary)

· Involvement in criminal street gang activity. (See glossary)

· Any criminal mischief, including a felony.

In accordance with state law, a student may be placed in a DAEP if the superintendent or the superintendent’s designee has reasonable belief (see glossary) that the student has engaged in conduct punishable as a felony, other than those listed as offenses involving injury to a person in Title 5 (see glossary) of the Texas Penal Code, that occurs off school property and not at a school-sponsored or school-related event, if the student’s presence in the regular classroom threatens the safety of other students or teachers or will be detrimental to the educational process.

The appropriate administrator may, but is not required to, place a student in a DAEP for off-campus conduct for which DAEP placement is required by state law if the administrator does not have knowledge of the conduct before the first anniversary of the date the conduct occurred.

Mandatory Placement: Misconduct That Requires DAEP Placement

A student must be placed in a DAEP if the student:

· Engages in conduct relating to a false alarm or report (including a bomb threat) or a terroristic threat involving a public school. (See glossary)

· Commits the following offenses on school property or within 300 feet of school property as measured from any point on the school’s real property boundary line, or while attending a school-sponsored or school-related activity on or off school property:

· Engages in conduct punishable as a felony.

· Commits an assault (see glossary) under Texas Penal Code 22.01(a)(1).

· Sells, gives, or delivers to another person, or possesses, uses, or is under the influence of marijuana, a controlled substance, or a dangerous drug in an amount not constituting a felony offense. (School-related felony drug offenses are addressed in the Expulsion section.) (See glossary for “under the influence”)

· Sells, gives, or delivers to another person an alcoholic beverage; commits a serious act or offense while under the influence of alcohol; or possesses, uses, or is under the influence of alcohol, if the conduct is not punishable as a felony offense. (School-related felony alcohol offenses are addressed in the Expulsion section.)

· Behaves in a manner that contains the elements of an offense relating to abusable volatile chemicals.

· Behaves in a manner that contains the elements of the offense of public lewdness or indecent exposure.

· Engages in expellable conduct and is between six and nine years of age.

· Commits a federal firearms violation and is younger than six years of age.

· Engages in conduct that contains the elements of the offense of retaliation against any school employee or volunteer on or off school property. (Committing retaliation in combination with another expellable offense is addressed in the Expulsion section of this Code.)

· Engages in conduct punishable as a felony listed under Title 5 (see glossary) of the Texas Penal Code when the conduct occurs off school property and not at a school-sponsored or school-related event and:

1. The student receives deferred prosecution (see glossary),

2. A court or jury finds that the student has engaged in delinquent conduct (see glossary), or

3. The superintendent or designee has a reasonable belief (see glossary) that the student engaged in the conduct.

Sexual Assault and Campus Assignments

If a student has been convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a young child or children or convicted of or placed on deferred adjudication for sexual assault or aggravated sexual assault against another student on the same campus, and if the victim's parent or another person with the authority to act on behalf of the victim requests that the board transfer the offending student to another campus, the offending student shall be transferred to another campus in the district. If there is no other campus in the district serving the grade level of the offending student, the offending student will be transferred to a DAEP.

Emergencies

In an emergency, the principal or the principal’s designee may order the immediate placement of a student in a DAEP for any reason for which placement in a DAEP may be made on a nonemergency basis.

Process

Removals to a DAEP will be made by the campus administrator or designee.

Conference

When a student is removed from class for a DAEP offense, the appropriate administrator will schedule a conference within three school days with the student’s parent, the student, and the teacher, in the case of a teacher removal.

At the conference, the appropriate administrator will inform the student, orally or in writing, of the reasons for the removal and will give the student an explanation of the basis for the removal and an opportunity to respond to the reasons for the removal.

Following valid attempts to require attendance, the district may hold the conference and make a placement decision regardless of whether the student or the student’s parents attend the conference.

Placement Order

After the conference, if the student is placed in the DAEP, the appropriate administrator will write a placement order. A copy of the DAEP placement order will be sent to the student and the student’s parent.

Not later than the second business day after the conference, the board’s designee will deliver to the juvenile court a copy of the placement order and all information required by Section 52.04 of the Family Code.

If the student is placed in the DAEP and the length of placement is inconsistent with the guidelines included in this Code, the placement order will give notice of the inconsistency.

Length of Placement

The duration of a student’s placement in a DAEP will be determined by the campus administrator or designee.

The duration of a student’s placement will be determined on a case-by-case basis. DAEP placement will be correlated to the seriousness of the offense, the student’s age and grade level, the frequency of misconduct, the student’s attitude, and statutory requirements.

The maximum period of DAEP placement shall be one calendar year except as provided below.

Exceeds One Year

Placement in a DAEP may exceed one year when a review by the district determines that:

1. The student is a threat to the safety of other students or to district employees, or

2. Extended placement is in the best interest of the student.

The statutory limitations on the length of a DAEP placement do not apply to a placement resulting from the board’s decision to place a student who engaged in the sexual assault of another student so that the students are not assigned to the same campus.

Exceeds School Year

Students who commit offenses requiring placement in a DAEP at the end of one school year may be required to continue that placement at the start of the next school year to complete the assigned term of placement.

For placement in a DAEP to extend beyond the end of the school year, the Superintendent or designee must determine that:

1. The student’s presence in the regular classroom or campus presents a danger of physical harm to the student or others, or

2. The student has engaged in serious or persistent misbehavior (see glossary) that violates the district’s Code.

Exceeds 60 Days

For placement in a DAEP to extend beyond 60 days or the end of the next grading period, whichever is sooner, a student’s parent will be given notice and the opportunity to participate in a proceeding before the board or the board’s designee.

Appeals

Questions or complaints from parents regarding disciplinary measures should be addressed to the campus administration, in accordance with policy FNG(LOCAL). A copy of this policy may be obtained from the principal’s office or the central administration office.

Disciplinary consequences will not be deferred pending the outcome of an appeal. The decision to place a student in a DAEP cannot be appealed beyond the board.

Restrictions during Placement

The district does not permit a student who is placed in a DAEP to participate in any school-sponsored or school-related extracurricular or cocurricular activity, including seeking or holding honorary positions and/or membership in school-sponsored clubs and organizations.

The district will provide transportation to students in a DAEP.

For seniors who are eligible to graduate and are assigned to a DAEP at the time of graduation, the last day of placement in the program will be the last instructional day, and the student will be allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony and related graduation activities unless otherwise specified in the DAEP placement order.

Placement Review

A student placed in a DAEP will be provided a review of his or her status, including academic status, by the campus administrator at intervals not to exceed 120 days. In the case of a high school student, the student’s progress toward graduation and the student’s graduation plan will also be reviewed. At the review, the student or the student’s parent will be given the opportunity to present arguments for the student’s return to the regular classroom or campus. The student may not be returned to the classroom of a teacher who removed the student without that teacher’s consent.

Additional Misconduct

If during the term of placement in a DAEP the student engages in additional conduct for which placement in a DAEP or expulsion is required or permitted, additional proceedings may be conducted, and the appropriate administrator may enter an additional disciplinary order as a result of those proceedings.

Notice of Criminal Proceedings

The office of the prosecuting attorney will notify the district if a student was placed in a DAEP for certain offenses including any felony, unlawful restraint, indecent exposure, assault, deadly conduct, terroristic threats, organized crime, certain drug offenses, or possession of a weapon, and:

1. Prosecution of a student’s case was refused for lack of prosecutorial merit or insufficient evidence and no formal proceedings, deferred adjudication (see glossary), or deferred prosecution will be initiated; or

2. The court or jury found a student not guilty, or made a finding that the student did not engage in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision, and the case was dismissed with prejudice.

If a student was placed in a DAEP for such conduct, on receiving the notice from the prosecutor, the superintendent or designee will review the student’s placement and schedule a review with the student’s parent not later than the third day after the superintendent or designee receives notice from the prosecutor. The student may not be returned to the regular classroom pending the review.

After reviewing the notice and receiving information from the student’s parent, the superintendent or designee may continue the student’s placement if there is reason to believe that the presence of the student in the regular classroom threatens the safety of other students or teachers.

The student or the student’s parent may appeal the superintendent’s decision to the board. The student may not be returned to the regular classroom pending the appeal. In the case of an appeal, the board will, at the next scheduled meeting, review the notice from the prosecutor and receive information from the student, the student’s parent, and the superintendent or designee, and confirm or reverse the decision of the superintendent or designee. The board will make a record

School District Authority and Jurisdiction