Many Dallas high school students make mistakes. Sometimes, the mistake is a single occurrence; other times, students show a pattern of violating school rules. Regardless, even a single mistake can put your child's academic standing and future in jeopardy.
Like all other school districts in Texas, the Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD) offers a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP). Students should only be sent to DAEP for certain violations, but sometimes, students receive a DAEP referral when more appropriate methods of discipline could have been used.
What's more, even if a student engages in such egregious behavior that a DAEP referral is warranted, the environment can make matters worse by isolating the student and making them feel like a criminal. Also, DAEPs do not have the same strict reporting, credentialing, and certification requirements that traditional classrooms use. Therefore, it's often difficult, if not impossible, to determine how well the DAEP is addressing the student's issues and furthering their education.
If your child received a DAEP referral from their Dallas high school or any high school in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area, you have every right to be concerned. You must address the matter quickly, and you should consult an experienced student attorney-advisor for help.
The Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm has helped many students in Dallas and throughout Texas and the entire country with their serious disciplinary action issues. We can deliver unmatched counsel and support because we have in-depth knowledge of Texas' school laws and a nationwide presence that provides us with vast resources.
We can review your case and advise you of your options. You can also count on us to fight hard to protect your child's rights and help them achieve the most favorable outcome possible. Contact our law firm today at 888.535.3686 to schedule a confidential consultation.
Dallas-Area School Districts
The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Metropolitan Area is home to more than 7 million residents, and the surrounding areas of Tarrant County, including the Mid-Cities region of Hurst-Euless-Bedford, have a population of over 2 million. The region is among the fastest growing in the state.
The Dallas ISD has 39 high schools that serve more than 40,000 students. It covers more than 384 square miles and encompasses the following cities:
- Dallas
- Addison
- Cockrell Hill
- Hutchins
- Seagoville
- Wilmer
It also includes parts of Carrollton, DeSoto, Duncanville, Farmers Branch, Garland, Highland Park, Lancaster, Mesquite, Balch Springs, and Combine.
Numerous other school districts also serve the greater Dallas metropolitan area, some of which include:
- Highland Park ISD
- Richardson ISD
- Rockwall ISD
- Harmony Public Schools ISD
- Duncanville ISD
- Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD
- Coppell ISD
- Mesquite ISD
- Grand Prairie ISD
- Cedar Hill ISD
- Lake Dallas ISD
If you have a child in a Dallas area school who has received serious disciplinary actions, such as a DAEP referral, you should contact the student defense team at the Lento Law Firm for help.
What is DAEP?
The Dallas ISD, and all school districts in Texas, expect their students to behave properly and adhere to school rules as well as state and federal laws. These expectations exist for students whether they are on campus, on a school bus, or attending a school-sponsored activity.
Texas passed legislation in 1995 that required public schools to offer a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) as a potential consequence of certain student code of conduct violations, namely, those that contained a serious or violent criminal element.
Originally, DAEPs were intended to serve as an alternative to Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Programs (JJAEP) for students who had been expelled from school for engaging in criminal offenses.
All Dallas-area schools offer a DAEP, and Dallas ISD's DAEP program is through the Barbara M. Manns High School and Middle School DAEP.
How Can You Child Receive a DAEP Referral?
The Dallas ISD defines four levels of misconduct or offenses that can result in disciplinary action. They are:
- Level I – Violations of classroom rules that teachers can resolve themselves or with some administrative action. Offenses include things such as not complying with a teacher's request, cheating, dress code violations, and using an electronic cigarette.
- Level II – Refers to more serious violations that may require placement in a Reset Center or DEAP referral. Offenses can include hazing, harassment, stealing or theft, and certain drug-related activities. It can also include fighting, bullying, and other threatening or disruptive behavior.
Depending on the nature and severity of the offense, students who conduct Level II violations may be sent to DAEP. Off-campus DAEP is permissible for students who commit the same violation multiple times as well as for students who conduct a Class C assault, cause a major classroom disruption, or make threats to students or staff.
- Level III – Mandatory placement in a DAEP. Level III offenses typically result in immediate mandatory placement in a DAEP. Offenses include possession or delivery of drugs or alcohol or being under the influence, a Class A Assault on students or staff, felony conduct, and harassing or retaliating against a school employee, among others.
- Level IV – Expulsion. Level IV offenses are serious criminal offenses that result in expulsion. They include aggravated robbery, assault with bodily injury, exhibiting a firearm, making terroristic threats, engaging in deadly conduct or criminal mischief, and breaching computer security. It also includes conducting a Title 5 felony against someone off campus.
- Level IV offenses are either violations of state law, or they constitute behaviors that severely disrupt the education process. Any criminal act a student conducts must be reported to the appropriate law enforcement.
Students may receive mandatory expulsion if they conduct aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault, kidnapping another student, or engage in any number of felony offenses on school grounds. However, the consequence may drop to discretionary expulsion if students conduct any felony offense within 300 feet of a school.
Disciplinary Responses for Violations
For Level I and II offenses, the district provides a list of intervention strategies that can include a behavioral management plan, counseling services, and mentoring programs. In many cases, a campus behavior coordinator will be involved in the process.
For Level II violations, the coordinator should impose disciplinary consequences and management solutions that are appropriate for the behavioral problem in question. If a campus behavior coordinator and administration feel the student should receive a DAEP referral for a Level II violation, the coordinator must implement at least two (2) intervention strategies approved by the district before sending the student to DAEP. If the student's behavior does not improve, the coordinator may escalate discipline management techniques and progress to other forms of intervention.
The investigation process for Level II, III, or IV violation is as follows:
- The campus behavior coordinator, along with school administration and law enforcement if necessary, must thoroughly investigate all alleged behavior issues in a timely fashion
- Investigators should collect information and details to make an appropriate decision in the interests of student and staff safety and preserving the educational environment
- The campus behavior coordinator should schedule a conference or hearing within three days
- The coordinator should contact the student's parent or guardian—or make a good-faith effort to contact them—within a day of the incident
If the violation or incident does not warrant DAEP or JJAEP removal, the coordinator and other parties may recommend “additional behavioral supports” in conjunction with “other non-punitive actions,” such as:
- Referral to a school counselor
- School counselor referral to Mental Health Services or a Youth & Family Center
- Implementing an individualized MTSS/Engagement plan
- Assigning a Student Support Team (SST)
- Implementing a behavioral intervention plan following the student's Section 504 or IDEA plan
Student Removal
A teacher may refer a student to a campus behavior coordinator and have the student removed from the classroom if the student:
- Repeatedly interferes with the teacher's ability to communicate effectively and conduct class
- Seriously interferes with other students' ability to learn
- Engages in activity so disruptive, unruly, or abusive that it severely impacts the classroom environment or endangers students and staff
The school principal or campus behavior coordinator may remove the student from the classroom and place them in another classroom, in a Reset Center, or in a DAEP. The matter will then go before a Placement Review Committee.
The Placement Review Committee comprises three members, two of which may be other teachers, and one is a professional staff member the campus behavior coordinator chooses. The referring teacher may not serve on the committee, but if the student engaged in assault, aggravated assault, sexual assault, or aggravated sexual assault against the teacher, the student may not return to the classroom without the teacher's consent.
The committee will determine the student's placement. When thinking about removing a student from a classroom for placement in a DAEP or JJAEP, the campus behavior coordinator and committee must consider the following:
- The seriousness of the offense
- The student's age and grade level
- The student's mental ability or functioning level
- The student's intent in conducting the violation
- The student's disciplinary history
- The impact of the violation or action on the educational environment
- Any disability the student has that may affect their ability to know right from wrong
- Whether the student acted in self-defense
- Whether the student has a Conservatorship of the Department of Family and Child Protective Services
- Whether the student is homeless
- Any other statutory considerations
The school may also place the student in a Reset Center. In this scenario, similar to in-school suspension, the student is assigned to a specific room on campus, where they will receive assignments from their teachers and work on the assignments in their new classroom. Students may also be sent to a Reset Center pending emergency placement in DAEP. The school cannot assign a student to a Reset Center for more than 30 consecutive days.
The campus behavior coordinator must contact the student's parents or guardians in person or by telephone and inform them of the disciplinary action on the day the action is taken. They must also make a good-faith effort to provide written notice to the parents or guardians on that date.
Administrative Hearings
If a student is facing DAEP or JJAEP referral, the district must conduct a hearing with appropriate due process. The student has the following rights:
- To be represented by a parent or other adult who can provide guidance
- The opportunity to be heard and present evidence in their defense
- The opportunity to question district representatives and challenge the evidence
Although students may have an adult representative present, the hearing will commence whether or not they have an adult advisor with them.
If the committee or school administration finds just cause to remove the student to a DAEP, they may only refer the student to the program for a minimum of 10 days and a maximum of 40 days, depending on the student's age and grade level and the nature and severity of the offense. However, students may stay in DAEP until they are no longer considered a safety threat.
Students may only take four basic courses—math, science, English, and social studies—but some DAEPs offer electives and AP and honors courses. Placement in a DAEP should not affect a student's four-year graduation plan, and they must have the opportunity to work on foundation curriculum courses at no additional cost.
The Dallas ISD's DAEP also provides a DAEP Good Day incentive program. Students may have their DAEP assignments reduced by one day for every full week during which they have perfect attendance and no behavioral referrals. The Good Day incentive does not apply to certain Level II, III, and IV violations.
The Appeals Process
If a student receives a DAEP or JJAEP referral, either they or their parents/guardians may appeal the decision. Parties must submit their appeals request within 10 school days following the hearing, but the student must continue with their DAEP or JJAEP placement until the appeals hearing. The student may have a parent/guardian or legal custodian/guardian represent them during the appeal.
For Level II, III, and IV offenses resulting in off-campus DAEP/JJAEP, parties must seek an appeal from the following, in order:
- Districtwide Student Discipline Hearing Officer
- Officer of Student Discipline
- Board of Trustees
Any decisions by the Board are final except for Level IV offenses that can be appealed to the Dallas County State District Court.
For students with disabilities, the appeals process remains the same, but if a parent disagrees with the Manifestation Determination, Review, and Dismissal Committee's (MD-ARD) decision, they may request an expedited administrative hearing before the Texas Education Agency.
Parents/guardians must seek appeals for Reset Center placement through the campus behavior coordinator.
How Can the Lento Law Firm Help?
DAEP placement can have a detrimental impact on your child's education and affect their future success. Only very serious forms of misconduct should warrant a DAEP referral, but that is not always the case.
Sometimes, students are sent to DAEP after conducting relatively minor infractions. Also, students can fall victim to false accusations from other students and even teachers and other staff members. Your child could have also been unjustly included with a group of other students and therefore deemed guilty by association instead of any actual wrongdoing.
Whatever your situation, you should take your child's DAEP referral seriously and contact an experienced student attorney-advisor immediately.
National student attorney-advisor Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team have many years of experience defending high school students against disciplinary actions, and we have in-depth knowledge of Texas education laws.
We can evaluate your situation and advise you of your rights and options. We can also fight diligently and zealously to help your child avoid DAEP placement and receive better results.
Call the Lento Law Firm today at 888-535-3686 today to schedule a consultation.
