Maine is a great state in which to raise and educate your child through public or private elementary and secondary schools. School districts in Portland, South Portland, Lewiston, Bangor, Auburn, Sanford, Buxton, South Paris, Windham, North Berwick, Waterboro, Scarborough, Oakland, and other cities and towns can provide sound and encouraging education. Don't let off-campus misconduct allegations ruin all that you have planned for your Maine K-12 student. Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Student Defense Team if your Maine elementary, middle, or high school student faces school disciplinary charges alleging off-campus misconduct. Call 888.535.3686 now to tell us about your student's case, or complete this contact form.
Student Misconduct Impacts Maine K-12 Schooling
Maine K-12 schools, like elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools in other states, hold their students accountable to certain standards of conduct. Part of that effort involves educating the minds and shaping the character of the students. You want your student to grow up as a consequence of schooling. Part of that effort, though, ensures the safety of other students and of school staff members, ensures the smooth operation of school programs, and secures the integrity of school property. You don't want other students to threaten your student's health, disrupt your student's studies, or steal or destroy your student's personal belongings and other school property. Nor do other parents want your student to threaten such harm. When students misbehave at school, schools may bring disciplinary charges against the student, resulting in the student's probation, suspension, or expulsion.
Off-Campus Misconduct & Maine K-12 Schooling
But it's not just student misconduct at school that can result in disciplinary charges. Student off-campus misconduct can also result in discipline, even up to suspension or expulsion. Don't be too surprised if allegations that your student committed a crime or offense while away from school, or injured or threatened another student off campus, results in notice from the school that it intends to suspend or expel your student, and refer your student for alternative disciplinary placement. Bad things can happen at school. But bad things can also happen away from school, after school hours, or over a weekend or vacation. When school officials believe those things show your student to be a safety or security risk or a potential disruption of school programs, your student may face disciplinary charges for that off-campus conduct.
Maine K-12 School Off-Campus Misconduct Policies
You and your student likely need only look to the policies of your student's Maine K-12 school to see that it claims the authority to discipline your student for certain off-campus misconduct. See, for example, the Student/Parent Handbook for the Bangor High School and Middle School. The handbook claims authority to discipline students not just for misconduct on school grounds but also for misconduct off school grounds at a school-sponsored event or affecting school property or operations. Bullying off campus, hazing off campus, harassment off campus, and similar off-campus misconduct may result in school disciplinary charges against your student.
The Lewiston Senior High School Student Handbook is another example. The handbook likewise claims authority to discipline not just for misconduct on school grounds, like possessing weapons, drugs, alcohol, or tobacco products, but also for similar misconduct off school grounds while at a school activity or affecting school property or operations. The Portland High School Student Handbook is yet another example, applying its conduct policies not only to activities on school property or at school events but also “at any time or place that such conduct directly interferes with the operations, discipline or general welfare of the school, including but not limited to cyber-communications.” Expect a similar reach at your student's Maine K-12 school, if not one of the above schools.
Types of Maine K-12 School Off-Campus Misconduct
Policies like the above ones in the middle schools and high schools in Bangor, Lewiston, and Portland suggest that disciplinary charges may result in several different kinds of off-campus misconduct, including each of the following categories. Let us help defend your student against any of these forms of off-campus misconduct allegations.
Misconduct at Off-Campus School Events and Activities
Students and parents tend to think of school as occurring at one location where the school building is. However, schools conduct many off-campus events and activities. School athletic teams, debate teams, bands, orchestras, choirs, and other performing arts groups all may travel around town or even regionally for competitions, tournaments, and shows, even for rehearsals, practices, and celebrations. Schools send interns to business, charity, and professional sites. Schools arrange field trips for groups of students to all kinds of locations for many different activities. Those off-campus school events can, at times, look and feel to students much less like school and much more like social events, where they may not conform their conduct to school standards but where school codes still apply.
Off-Campus Misconduct Affecting School Community Members
Another instance where your student may face disciplinary charges alleging off-campus misconduct is where your student's alleged actions affect a member of the school community. If, for instance, a student vandalizes a teacher's residence or threatens a student off-campus with harm on campus, the school may determine that the alleged misconduct sufficiently relates to and adversely affects school community members as to authorize disciplinary charges. Beware of off-campus disputes between your student and another member of the school community, even a student acquaintance. The school may allege that those disputes arise out of and affect school operations.
Off-Campus Misconduct Presenting On-Campus Risks
Another instance when schools may pursue disciplinary charges for off-campus misconduct is when the conduct, although unrelated to school grounds or members of the school community, suggests a significant risk to the school. An example would be if a student committed a violent crime off campus against someone not a member of the school community. Nonetheless, the school may determine that the violence indicates a propensity to act in a way that presents a school risk. Beware if your student faces any kind of off-campus allegation, whether having to do with personal violence or property theft or damage, that your student's school officials may construe to represent a threat when your student returns to the school's grounds.
Resolving Off-Campus Misconduct Charges in Maine K-12 Schools
Yes, your student can face disciplinary charges in a Maine K-12 school alleging off-campus misconduct. Just because the conduct occurred over the summer, on a weekend, or at another time and place away from school does not mean that your student will avoid discipline. Yet just because your student faces a charge does not mean that discipline will result. Maine's K-12 schools must generally provide your student with protective procedures that our skilled and experienced attorneys may be able to invoke to help you and your student defend and defeat the charges. We may alternatively be able to convince your student's school officials to take a non-disciplinary approach to the issue. Consider the following alternative approaches that we may be able to successfully advocate and invoke for your student's best outcome.
Restorative Approaches to Off-Campus Misconduct
Maine elementary and secondary school officials recognize that their responsibility is primarily to educate, not to punish, students. Elementary school, middle school, and high school students are still developing the mental, physical, emotional, and social capacities to conform their conduct to community standards. Maine school disciplinary officials may thus accept restorative approaches to discipline over punitive approaches. The Lewiston High School Student Handbook, for instance, lists guidance as the first alternative for sanctions, involving “a conversation between the student and school personnel” “to inform the student that his/her behavior needs to change so that he/she does not violate the rights of others or to help the student improve his/her learning capabilities.” We may be able to help convince school officials to follow such restorative approaches.
Collaborative Approaches to Off-Campus Misconduct
We may also be able to advocate, recommend, and negotiate collaborative alternatives to school discipline for your Maine K-12 student. Collaborative approaches seek to involve other stakeholders, potentially involving the alleged victim of any wrong and any other school community members affected by the alleged wrong, in a preferred outcome. We may be able to show school disciplinary officials that your student and the school community would benefit if your student engaged in school service or activities through which your student would demonstrate the capacity to conform. School officials may also owe your student disability accommodations or other tools and resources to overcome issues affecting your student's capability to conform.
Remedial Approaches to Off-Campus Misconduct
We may also be able to advocate and negotiate for remedial approaches to off-campus misconduct, especially where school officials need to see that your student does not present an unreasonable safety, security, or operations risk. A remedial approach may involve providing your student with additional education, training, and mentoring, such as assigning a mature student from a higher grade as a model, or a teacher or staff member as a coach, guide, and mentor. Your student may just need the opportunity to show school officials that your student can be responsible within the school community, notwithstanding the events occurring outside the school.
Adjudicative Approaches to Off-Campus Misconduct
If the above alternative approaches are inappropriate for your student's matter or unsuccessful in producing an acceptable outcome, then our attorneys are prepared to help you and your student adjudicate the matter through the school's procedures, district and state procedures, and the courts as necessary. The Bangor High School Student/Parent Handbook, for instance, expressly guarantees students due process of law when resolving disciplinary charges. Our attorneys know how to invoke those formal hearing procedures to gather and present your student's exonerating and mitigating evidence and challenge the school's contrary evidence of wrongdoing. We can also take appeals and seek court review if appropriate.
Potential Impact of Maine K-12 Discipline
Do not underestimate the impact on your Maine K-12 student of school discipline for off-campus misconduct. Primary and secondary schooling is so important for your student's development that any significant interruption can affect your student in the short and long term. Consider these impacts and retain our Student Defense Team when you are deciding how to respond to the off-campus misconduct allegations.
Off-Campus Misconduct Immediate Impacts
You might be surprised to find out that school officials generally have the authority to immediately remove a student who presents a safety or security risk, even before the student and the student's parents have a chance to respond to the off-campus misconduct allegations. The law limits that emergency authority so that you and your student should have a prompt opportunity for a hearing after the removal. Let us help invoke that right and advocate for the best outcome, including immediate reinstatement. Removal from the school can obviously hurt and even end your student's studies, putting your student well behind classmates when catching up can be very hard to do.
Off-Campus Misconduct Short-Term Impacts
If the school removes your student for more than a few days, your student may not only fall behind in studies but may fail subjects, miss out on learning necessary to advance, and even face getting held back a year or getting referred to an alternative disciplinary school. Discipline can also result in other students refusing to interact with your student, causing your student to feel embarrassment and shame, and leading to school tardiness, withdrawal, and moderate to severe mental and emotional effects.
Off-Campus Misconduct Long-Term Impacts
If your student remains out of school longer term due to discipline for off-campus misconduct, your student could suffer long-term developmental, educational, and vocational impacts. Your student may get tracked into a vocational rather than college and professional program, potentially affecting your student's ambition and opportunities for jobs and careers. Don't look back years later, regretting not having advocated effectively for your student against off-campus disciplinary charges. Get our help.
Guidance for Maine School Disciplinary Proceedings
The Lento Law Firm's premier Student Defense Team has the skilled and experienced attorneys to invoke Maine K-12 school and district procedures for your student's best outcome. Let our attorneys provide you and your student with any or all of the following services so that your student has the best possible experience and outcome:
- obtain a detailed specification of the charges, to explain the charges to you, and answer the charges with appropriate defenses;
- identify, acquire, and present your student's exonerating and mitigating evidence;
- invoke early informal resolution procedures, using restorative, collaborative, and remedial options to advise and negotiate for early voluntary dismissal of charges;
- research and identify the laws, rules, policies, and procedures that will afford your student with the greatest protections;
- invoke and attend the formal hearing, presenting your student's evidence and cross-examining adverse witnesses as hearing rules allow;
- pursue appeals to higher authorities of any adverse decisions imposing discipline on your student;
- seek alternative special relief through the school district's general counsel's office or other oversight channels; and
- pursue court challenges as the state's administrative procedure laws permit.
Premier Student Defense for Maine K-12 Students
Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Student Defense Team if your student faces off-campus misconduct allegations at your student's elementary, middle, or high school in Portland, South Portland, Lewiston, Bangor, Auburn, Sanford, Buxton, South Paris, Windham, North Berwick, Waterboro, Scarborough, Oakland, or any other Maine city or town. We have helped hundreds of students nationwide defend and defeat misconduct charges of all kinds, including charges of off-campus misconduct. Call 888.535.3686 now to tell us about your case, or complete this contact form.
