As a parent, you know that a good education is the foundation of your child's future. Because your priority is providing them with the best primary and secondary education possible, they attend school in the Irving Independent School District (IISD).
You've chosen to live, build community, and have your child educated in Irving, Texas, believing the IISD schools are committed to the best interests of their students and your child. Because of the level of trust you've placed in the IISD, it can be devastating to learn your child has been referred to a disciplinary alternative education placement (DAEP) program. Instead of teaching your child and fostering their academic, social, and emotional growth, IISD now intends to sentence them to exclusionary discipline, isolating them from their teachers, friends, classmates, and teammates.
It's up to you to shield your child from their school and the DAEP program, but you don't have to do it alone. The Lento Law Firm protects students in the Irving Independent School District from extreme exclusionary student discipline, such as diversion into a DAEP program.
With experienced education law attorneys in Dallas and across Texas, the Lento Law Firm knows the IISD. If your student faces a DAEP referral, contact our Student Defense Team at 888-535-3686 or complete a confidential consultation form.
The Irving Independent School District in Irving, Texas
The IISD serves students, from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade, from the Dallas-Fort Worth area. There are over 31,000 elementary, middle, and high schools in the IISD from communities such as Bear Creek, Plymouth Park, Hillcrest Oaks, Northgate Heights, Trinity Oaks, Owen Point, Nicholas Park, Espanita, and University Hills.
IISD's public middle schools include Austin Middle School, Bowie Middle School, Crockett Middle School, De Zavala Middle School, Sam Houston Middle School, Johnson Middle School, Lamar Middle School, and Travis Middle School.
IISD's public high schools are Cardwell Career Preparatory Center, Irving High School, MacArthur High School, Nimitz High School, Singley Academy, Singley Collegiate Academy, and South Irving Collegiate.
IISD elementary or secondary students who are in a DAEP attend classes at the Student Reassignment Center, which consists of both the Elementary Reassignment Center and the Secondary Reassignment Center.
The IISD neighbors other Dallas-Fort Worth area school districts, such as:
- Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District
- Coppell Independent School District
- Dallas Independent School District
- Grand Prairie Independent School District
- Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District
- Hurst-Euless-Bedford Independent School District
If your child receives a DAEP referral from a school in the IISD or any Texas district, the Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm can help you respond and contest the placement. Your student deserves more than the isolation of an alternative education program.
Student Discipline in the Irving Independent School District
Throughout Texas, school districts create student codes of conduct that outline prohibited behavior and the consequences of violations, including when the school may remove a student from their school and place them in a DAEP. The IISD's code of conduct classifies prohibited behaviors into four categories of increasing severity.
Group I misbehaviors are low-intensity such as disrespect, disruption, dress code violations, and tardiness. Penalties for Group 1 behaviors include warnings, loss of classroom privileges, and detention.
The Group II category includes conduct that interferes in a more significant, excessive, or repeated manner such as academic dishonesty, disobedience, inappropriate material, physical branding or aggression, teasing, and truancy. The possible sanctions for a Group II violation include parent conferences, restitution, and removal from extra-curricular activities.
Group III misbehaviors result in serious disruption to the learning environment and may present a danger to the health and safety of people and/or cause property damage. Group III behaviors include abusive language, inappropriate touching, sexual harassment, and gambling. The possible consequences include emergency removal from school, in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, and other corrective action deemed appropriate.
Group IV misbehaviors are the most serious, presenting a danger to lives and greater risk of property damage, such as arson, assault, bullying, cyberbullying, illegal drugs, weapons, indecent exposure, and threats. The possible sanctions include parent conferences, in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, placement in a DAEP, expulsion, and any other corrective action deemed appropriate.
Student conduct violations that may result in a discretionary DAEP referral include:
- Bullying that encourages a student to commit or attempt to commit suicide.
- Incitement of violence against a student through group bullying
- Releasing or threatening to release intimate visual material of a minor or of a student who is over 18 years of age without their consent
- Involvement in criminal street gang activity.
- Criminal mischief is not punishable as a felony.
- Assault with threat of imminent bodily injury
- Assault by offensive or provocative physical contact.
DAEP placement is mandatory if the student takes the following actions on or near school property or at a school event:
- Commits a felony or serious assault.
- Sells, distributes, or uses illegal drugs or alcohol.
- Sells, distributes, or delivers to another or possesses or uses an e-cigarette.
- Abuses volatile chemicals.
- Engages in public lewdness.
- Harasses a school employee.
DAEPs should be limited to only the most severe and dangerous student misconduct. If your child's behavior is inconsistent with an extreme exclusionary sanction, the Lento Law Firm can partner with you to seek a fair and proportionate punishment.
The DAEP Disciplinary Processes and the Irving Independent School District
In the IISD, a school's campus behavior coordinator determines when a DAEP removal is appropriate. Within three days of your student's misconduct, the campus behavior coordinator will schedule a conference with the student, the student's parent, and in some cases, the teacher.
At the hearing, the campus behavior coordinator will provide the students with information about the reasons for removal, an explanation of the basis for the removal, and an opportunity to respond.
The campus behavior coordinator then decides whether to put the student in a DAEP by considering mitigating factors, such as:
- Whether the student acted in self-defense.
- The student's intent or lack of intent when they engaged in the prohibited conduct.
- The student's disciplinary history.
- Whether the student has a disability that greatly impairs their understanding of the wrongfulness of their conduct
- Whether the student is homeless or in foster care.
The campus behavior coordinator must consider mitigating factors for every referral, including those violations that qualify for a mandatory DAEP.
Additionally, the campus behavior coordinator also determines the duration of the student's placement based on the seriousness of the offense, the student's age and grade level, the frequency of misconduct, the student's attitude, and statutory requirements.
Because prior disciplinary history is a factor when determining whether or not to send a student to a DAEP and the duration of the placement, your child should avoid establishing a problematic discipline record. After a student attends a DAEP, they become more likely to receive an alternative placement and be placed for a longer period. The Lento Law Firm can partner with you to protect your child's best interests and fight to keep them out of a DAEP.
DAEP Appeal Rights in the Irving Independent School District
In almost every case, students who receive a DAEP placement should pursue any available appeal options. DAEP appeals in the IISD can be procedurally complex and involve uncompromising timelines, deadlines, and form requirements.
In the IISD, there are four levels of appeal available for a DAEP placement:
- Level 1: A Level 1 appeal is made to the school principal.
- Level 2: If a parent or student is not satisfied with the principal's decision, they can request a conference with the coordinator of campus operations.
- Level 3: A parent or student can appeal the Level 2 decision by requesting a conference with the superintendent of schools or their designee.
- Level 4: A Level 4 appeal is made to the IISD school board. If the board fails to act on the complaint by the end of the next regularly scheduled meeting, the Level 3 decision is upheld.
The decision to place a student in a DAEP is not appealable beyond the board.
Importantly, the imposition of disciplinary consequences cannot be delayed pending an appeal. A student referred to a DAEP program will attend their alternative placement while the appeals are ongoing.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you determine your student's DAEP appeal rights, the best approach to exercising their rights, and when to file or submit a request for review or appeal.
DAEP Programs in Irving, Texas
Every Texas school district must design and administer a DAEP option for elementary and secondary students who are removed from school. The DAEP placement is intended to provide an opportunity for the student to learn to better manage their behavior.
Texas requires that every DAEP program:
- Operate in a setting other than the student's regular classroom.
- Ensure that students assigned to a DAEP are separated from students who are not assigned a DAEP.
- Establish a curriculum focused on English language art, mathematics, science, history, and self-discipline.
- Address students' educational and behavioral needs.
- Provide supervision and counseling.
- Employ certified teachers.
Despite these requirements, alternative placements can be extremely difficult for vulnerable students to navigate. If you are concerned about the adverse impact of a DAEP on your child, let the Lento Law Firm help you fight to keep your child out of an alternative education placement.
Let the Lento Law Firm Help Protect Your Student from a Disciplinary Alternative Education Placement in Irving, Texas
If you worry that your student may receive a DAEP or other extreme exclusionary discipline, you can partner with our Student Defense Team to develop and execute a comprehensive student defense strategy.
Before, during, and after a DAEP referral hearing, our experienced education law attorneys can:
- Review the allegations against your child and the school's actions to ensure it has met its notice and due process requirements.
- Identify and document the mitigating factors that should be considered during the DAEP hearing.
- Prepare you and your child for any conference or hearing with school or school district officials.
If a conference ends with your child placed into an alternative education program, the Lento Law Firm can navigate IISD's multi-level appeal process on your behalf.
The Adverse Consequences of a DAEP
Any student can make a mistake or be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Few students behave in a manner that warrants the harsh reality of a DAEP.
A student's placement in a DAEP can have a profound impact on their education and their future. Their school year will be interrupted by a short-term placement in an alternative setting with a different curriculum.
Students placed in a DAEP cannot participate in extra-curricular activities. A student whose well-being and sense of community are linked to a team, club, or other school organization may suffer in isolation without access to their support system. No one wants to watch their child suffer the stigma and isolation of a DAEP placement. Our Student Defense Team will fight to keep your student in the academic environment they need.
At the Lento Law Firm, Your Student is Our Priority
You love your kid. You want what is best for them and protect them from harm. And, you know that placement in a disciplinary alternative education program jeopardizes their future.
In Irving and across Texas, DAEPs too often undermine the students who need comprehensive support and resources. After being referred to a DAEP, vulnerable children often end up falling behind in their studies, becoming alienated from their friends, teammates, and classmates, and experiencing additional disciplinary problems.
The IISD is no different. If your student receives a DAEP referral, take immediate action to protect your child. Because DAEP placements occur quickly, students and their parents are at a disadvantage, scrambling to keep up with the district's harsh treatment.
The risk to your child is real. A DAEP is unlikely to improve your child's behavior or lead to academic success. Instead, a DAEP may impede or undermine your student's educational progression, mental health, and social relationships.
Let the Lento Law Firm provide your student with the DAEP defense they need and deserve. Contact the Lento Law Firm and our Student Defense Team by phone at 888-535-3686 or tell us about your case online.
