Students in Vermont schools are given years of instruction and guidance to prepare them to begin a career or continue their education in college. Through rigorous assessments and examinations, students can build their foundation as the next generation of doctors, lawyers, engineers, and professors. Dedicated parents are always by their children's sides throughout their journey. No matter where they may step in to assist them, it is to support their goal of graduating with a high school diploma.
While navigating academic requirements and extracurricular obligations, students must also adhere to school guidelines that govern classroom behavior and actions during school-related ventures. To promote an inclusive learning environment, institutions detail numerous prohibited behaviors that will be met with a reprimand. Parents may be under the guise that misconduct is handled straightforwardly, but that's no longer a guarantee.
As many schools shift to zero-tolerance disciplinary policies, violations that used to be handled through stern discussions with teachers, extra assignments, and a phone call home from the school principal are now increasingly grounds for the following exclusionary solutions:
- Out-of-school suspensions
- Emergency interventions
- Expulsions
- Relocation to an alternative education setting (AES)
Any misconduct handled by separating a student from their traditional studies can severely hinder their pathway toward success. Even though there are processes to reintegrate suspended or expelled students back into the school, there's no promise your child will pick up where they left off. It can leave them disparaged in their efforts to pursue their goals, and they may be categorized as delinquents. Commonly, suspension, expulsions, and removal from school to an AES cause students to become less valued in the college application pool and as potential candidates for employment with corporate employers.
Schools face growing pressure from the public and obligations linked to government funding programs to institute more stringent practices. Therefore, schools tend to choose appropriations and their reputation over helping struggling students. If you're a parent, you may be unaware of how to help your child when allegations of even minor misconduct arise. Honest, hard-working students of good character are threatened with severe consequences when misconduct is addressed, even if they may not have committed it. Considering the ramifications, it's essential that you become aware of how school districts levy punishments.
Avoiding Alternative Education Settings in Vermont
Suspensions and expulsions may seem like an uncomplicated measure of discipline. Students are removed from school for several days or altogether for one calendar school year. The Vermont Code of Rules 22.000.009 §4311.1 states that short-term suspensions are regarded as ten school days or less. However, once a student has been suspended for more than ten days in one school year or more than ten consecutive days, the administration can pursue placing the student in an AES or other alternative placement.
A first-time class disruption may not be a guaranteed way for your child to be sent to an AES. Regardless, it may be an instance of misconduct a school can use to substantiate recurrent misbehavior. According to Vermont Statutes Annotated (VSA) 16 §570, placement in an AES is used to punish infractions involving, but not limited to:
- Bullying
- Habitual truancy
- Harassment
- Hazing
- Possession of weapons or replicas
- Threats of violence
- Using narcotics, tobacco, or other prohibited substances on school grounds
- Unlawful conduct
An AES is a beneficial tool for some students to change their negative behavior patterns and return to their regular school environment. Still, the behavior that instigated a student's change in educational placement can be reinforced during their time in a program. Moreover, since an AES is an out-of-sight, out-of-mind exclusionary solution, there may be potential harmful issues within the programs.
For example, individual AES programs may harbor:
- Inadequate teaching methods
- Outdated subject matter
- A lack of supportive resources for students
- In-house adverse behaviors
Placement in a Vermont AES can easily brand your child a perennial troublemaker and make them vulnerable to unjust treatment. An AES can not only impede their academic progress once they return to the traditional environment but establish a negative personal record that will afflict them even after graduation. Because of this, if your child faces disciplinary actions and possible placement in an AES, it's important that you contact student defense advisor Joseph D. Lento and his team at the Lento Law Firm immediately.
Student Codes of Conduct for School Discipline in Vermont
Under VSA 16 §1161, each public and independent school must adopt and implement a comprehensive plan for responding to student misbehavior and "promote the positive development of youths." These student codes of conduct will also include various academic thresholds students must meet at a pre-determined rate. Nevertheless, a majority of the text will detail behavioral standards.
Legislative guidelines assert that each code of conduct must include the following:
- The school's approach to classroom management
- Responses to disruptive behavior, including the use of an AES
- Provisions for information and training for students regarding conflict resolution, peer mediation, and anger management
- Procedures for informing parents and notifying parents of student misconduct, and with them to improve student behavior
- Faculty and staff training to promote student behavior management, the enforcement of disciplinary policies, and positive youth development models
- Descriptions of behaviors on and off school grounds that constitute misconduct
- Due process procedures for suspension and expulsion of a student
Schools must distribute the code of conduct to each student, typically during the enrollment period or after advancing to the next grade level. Students and their parents or guardians will commonly be asked to sign a statement explaining they have received the code of conduct. Thus, ignorance is not a defense when misconduct allegations arise.
Instead, the code of conduct is a parent's first line of defense when their student children are threatened by harsh discipline. As mentioned above, Vermont school districts cannot arbitrarily address misconduct allegations and levy sanctions. There must be a reasonable, corresponding consequence to the alleged rule violations. Yet, even though the code of conduct summarizes the processes of identifying and addressing misconduct through the investigative, hearing, and sanctioning stages, some violations may be managed by the deference of school administrators. Therefore, unintended consequences can emerge when not only the alleged misconduct is reprimanded but the student's record as well. In effect, disciplinary boards may hand down excessive punishments due to bias against the student.
Given the issues that young students may face while they grow older, there are regularly extenuating circumstances that lead students astray. From emergencies with family members to the breakdown of personal relationships with friends, challenges that have nothing to do with academics can end up unfairly punished at school. Transferring students from their usual learning environment to an unconventional AES with unfamiliar peers, instructors, and administrators isn't a reliable reform tactic for students in need.
Disciplinary Procedures in Vermont Schools
When a student is subject to disciplinary action, the school district will afford the student "due process procedures" per Vermont Code of Rules 22.000.009 §4311. In all cases of short-term suspension from school, regarded as ten days or less, the student and their parent or guardian will be given an opportunity for an informal hearing before a designated school official.
The district shall provide the following:
- Written notice of the alleged misconduct
- Explanations of the evidence against the student
- The opportunity for the student to tell their side of the story
- A final determination made in writing to the parent or guardian
In cases of a long-term suspension, which is more than ten days, the student and their parent or guardian will be given an opportunity for a formal hearing before the school board. Parents and their student children will be provided with:
- A written notice detailing the date, time, and place of the hearing
- Nature of the misconduct charges against the student
- Right to retain outside legal representation
- Possible penalties involved if the student is found responsible
- Opportunity to gather and present evidence and witnesses
- Chance to cross-examine witnesses during the hearing
- A final determination made in writing to the parent or guardian
Vermont schools may assert that they will provide any students alleged to have committed misconduct due process. Still, since a school disciplinary hearing is not a court of law, there is no guarantee. Unfortunately, students are at the mercy of the administrator or the school board in charge.
Process for AES Placement in Vermont
Students may only be removed from school for up to ten days during any school year when suspended. Additionally, it will require approval from the district's superintendent to expel a student for 90 school days or the remainder of the school year, whichever is longer.
An AES may provide at-risk students with programs and assessments in a setting designed to effectively meet the student's academic, social, and relational needs. Secondly, schools may administer a plan of "alternative learning" that offers a combination of the following:
- Collaboration with home-bound, school, social service, and work-study programs and agencies
- Flexible scheduling
- Focusing on improving social, emotional, and relationship skills
- Mentoring adults
- Relevant alternative curricula geared toward the student
- Smaller class sizes
- Specially-skilled instructors
An AES may seem like an amicable way for your child to correct their misbehavior. However, if your child is remanded for misconduct, it could be that they couldn't stop themselves from committing it or a situation at school triggered it.
Each student's child is different. Although schools often have umbrella policies that treat each pupil identically, it can be why misconduct occurred in the first place. Therefore, there are regulations to mitigate unfair treatment toward a student because of potential differences and incapacities.
Manifestation Determination Review
Students may not be suspended for longer than ten days in Vermont or expelled for misconduct from a disability. Therefore, when the possibility of placement in an AES arises, school district officials will perform a manifestation determination review (MDR), supported under Section 504 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). An MDR determines whether a student's misconduct was prompted by the school's failure to fulfill the student's Individualized Educational Plan (IEP).
The MDR team assessment, which includes the student's parent or guardian, staff and faculty members familiar with the student, and the district's special education staff, will evaluate the student's record to understand a potential connection between the misconduct and a disability. If your child has regular contact with a doctor, counselor, psychiatrist, or other healthcare professional, they should be present at the meeting. Although it's not an all-encompassing list, some official disabilities that may permit the establishment of an IEP to include:
- Autism
- Chronic emotional distress
- Hearing impairment
- Learning disabilities
- Physical limitations
- Speech or language impairment
- Vision damage
An MDR may determine that a disability caused the student's misconduct or that the school district failed to properly carry out the student's IEP. In that case, the student may immediately return to school with an updated IEP aligned to allow them equal access to the education non-disabled students receive. However, if a disability doesn't exist or the school's original procedures are adhered to regarding a student's IEP, the student will be sent to an AES.
Challenging the MDR Process
Parents of students relocated to an AES have an opportunity to fight back against unfair discipline. When parents seek to challenge an MDR, a written complaint may be filed to Vermont's Agency of Education. Parents, guardians, or their representatives can allege that the school failed to comply with various state regulations, special education laws, or IDEA, including, but not limited to, the identification, evaluation, placement, or provision of appropriate early intervention services.
There are three options available for resolving disputes with the school or district. These options include:
- Administrative complaints
- Mediation
- Due process hearings
Administrative complaints may be filed with Vermont's secretary of education if parents believe a school district has violated federal or state special education laws. An organization or a group of parents may also file a complaint if it considers violations affecting a group of students. The office will appoint agency staff to investigate the complaint, including interviews with parents, MDR team members, and staff and gathering evidence. A decision must be issued within 60 days of receipt of the complaint. If the administrative complaint is also the subject of a due process hearing, the department will not investigate any part of the complaint that is being addressed as part of the hearing until its conclusion.
Mediation is a no-cost, voluntary process that will be used only if the parent or guardian and the school agree to participate. An impartial, agency-mandated mediator will help the parties come to an agreement but not make any decisions. Agreeing to mediation won't delay or deny access to a due process hearing and can be pursued at any time, either before or after a hearing is requested. The state agency will offer mediation when either party asks for a due process hearing, but neither is required to accept it.
Due process hearings are formal reviews conducted by trained, impartial hearing officers appointed by the state education agency. Due process complaints may be filed with the agency regarding special education and IDEA Section 504 issues for students. Decisions will be made within 60 days and are legally binding.
Protecting Your Child from a Vermont AES
Placement in an AES can immensely impact a student's future and academic and career opportunities. Considering the severe implications from alternative placements, there is a considerable possibility your student child will be categorized as a delinquent young adult when they try to enroll in college or secure a job after graduation.
Parents have a greater chance of preventing their children from placement in an AES if they remain engaged during the process. Therefore, when you become aware of a disciplinary issue, it's critical to do the following:
- Contact the school administration immediately. Transcribe as much information as possible and keep a record of all contacts—written or verbal—with anyone involved in the situation.
- Speak with your child about the incident and help them to write down what they remember, including interactions with students, teachers, and staff.
- Call student defense advisor Joseph D. Lento to begin working with you on a strategy to help your child.
- Continue to gather relevant evidence, such as emails, photos, text messages, social media posts, and transcriptions.
- Consult the school's code of conduct to understand how the disciplinary process may proceed.
How Student Defense Advisor Joseph D. Lento Can Keep Your Child Out of an AES
When an alternative placement is a potential disciplinary course of action, it's typical for novice legal representatives of students to initiate their defense by moving forward with expensive lawsuits against the school district. Even though a formal suit is a possible method to keep your child out of an AES, litigation is rarely necessary. Additionally, court proceedings can make the situation much more stressful for them and their parent or guardian.
Attorneys may also encourage you to trust their record arguing before judges or in front of juries. While it may sound like a good opportunity to pursue, think again. School disciplinary meetings are not the same as a court of law. The competencies used to arbitrate are much different than those necessary in negotiations with school administration officials and MDR team members to expedite a good solution for students stuck in the disciplinary process.
Over the years, Joseph D. Lento has developed relationships with countless members of schools' Office of General Counsel (OGC) in districts across Vermont and the U.S. This allows situations involving students facing a change in placement to be resolved before official proceedings begin with a school. Even if administration officials attempt to follow through with burdensome corrective measures, a proven student defense attorney can give you peace of mind that your son or daughter will have the best outcome to avoid an AES. A professional can help you make sense of school disciplinary policy to know what rights your child has in disciplinary matters by ensuring administrators follow procedures correctly. He will guarantee you're aware of the timeframes for notices of hearings, the investigation process, and how to appeal, even if the situation goes to the state education agency.
Frequently, schools with zero-tolerance policies overreact in their judgment to satisfy public opinion and retain government funding sources. With an experienced student defense advisor, you'll discover that effective representation can end the situation quickly with the student's best interests in mind.
Joseph D. Lento and his team at the Lento Law Firm have assisted Vermont students in innumerable disciplinary circumstances. The confidence he gives clients allows them to stand up to their school's harsh punitive measures. Protect your student child's rights with a team staffed with the knowledge necessary to support you through challenging situations. Contact the Lento Law Firm today by calling 888-535-3686 or visiting the online consultation form.
