DAEP Defense in Mesquite, Texas

Mesquite, Texas, is a growing city in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, and cities on the rise thrive only when they invest in their children and their education. Most students in Mesquite, Texas, attend schools within the Mesquite Independent School District (Mesquite ISD), with a smaller portion attending schools in the Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD). Both school districts have benefits and downsides, but one risk is present in both: the risk of DAEP placement.

Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs (DAEP) are Texas's attempt to manage disruptive and dangerous student behavior by removing students from their home campus and placing them in alternative education programs. Despite the good they can bring, DAEP placement often leads to academic and social issues for young students who are removed from familiar environments. Students have the right to contest DAEP placement in Mesquite, Texas, and the Lento Law Firm wants to help.

The Lento Law Firm has extensive experience representing young students in both Mesquite ISD and Dallas ISD. Operating out of a local Dallas office, our Student Defense Team understands the risks of DAEP placement and will fight for the rights of your Mesquite child. Disciplinary concerns should not jeopardize your child's education and future prospects. Call the Lento Law Firm today at 888.535.3686 or contact us through our website to begin defending your Mesquite student.x

How Do Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs Work?

A Disciplinary Alternative Education Program provides an alternative educational setting for Texas students who school officials remove from regular classrooms due to disciplinary issues. In the ideal scenario, DAEP students receive the same quality of education and schooling. However, the reality of DAEP placement often proves challenging for students and may lead to subpar outcomes.

Texas state law allows or mandates DAEP placement as punishment for certain student behaviors, and school districts base their policies and placement decisions on this law. For example, Mesquite ISD clearly outlines many offenses that can lead to DAEP placement, including:

• Severe Bullying: Encouraging another student to commit or attempt suicide or inciting violence through group bullying.
• Release of Intimate Visual Material: Releasing or threatening to release intimate visual material of a minor or an adult student without consent.
• Gang-Related Activity: Participating in a gang or engaging in criminal street gang activity.
• Drug and Alcohol Offenses: Selling, giving, or delivering controlled substances and drugs to other students or individuals.
• Weapons and Threats: Making terroristic threats or creating false alarms regarding a school's safety.
• Assault or Physical Misconduct: Committing assault or threatening imminent bodily harm.
• Harassment of School Employees: Engaging in harassment against school employees, including threats, stalking, or retaliation on or off campus.
• Sexual Misconduct and Public Lewdness: Engaging in public lewdness, indecent exposure, or severe acts of sexual misconduct or assault.
• Severe Property Damage or Criminal Mischief: Engaging in criminal mischief or felonious property crimes.

Some acts of misbehavior require mandatory DAEP placement, while others allow school and district officials to make a choice, considering the student's disciplinary history and status. However, Student Defense attorneys at the Lento Law Firm can assist regardless of the situation to help reduce punishment and return your student to their home campus as soon as possible.

Why Texas School Districts Use DAEP

First and foremost, independent school districts in Texas must implement DAEP within their districts due to Texas law. However, the actual goal and intended purpose of DAEP is to correct behavioral issues in the school district, eventually reintegrating students into their regular schools. At-risk students continue to receive an education in a controlled environment, and innocent students and school staff remain protected from harm. What could be the downside?

Problems arise because school districts sometimes use DAEP as a one-size-fits-all solution to disciplinary challenges. DAEP can be overly punitive for minor infractions, and DAEP placement is not always the best way for your student to improve their on-campus behavior.

So, what should Mesquite students expect when enrolled in DAEP? Each district is different, but common restrictions on daily life include:

• Rigid Schedules: Fixed daily routines with little flexibility.
• Restricted Items: Prohibition of personal electronics and other distractions.
• Behavioral Monitoring: Close supervision and clear behavioral expectations.
• Social Isolation: Limited peer interaction, even during lunch and hallway periods.

Updates to Texas law have made DAEP placement even more common in nearly all school districts, including those serving Mesquite students. The Lento Law Firm operates four Texas law offices, including a local Dallas office, and is the best choice for families dealing with DAEP concerns in Mesquite. Call today at 888.535.3686 to get started on your student's DAEP defense.

Local School Districts in Mesquite, Texas

Mesquite, Texas, is home to roughly 150,000 residents and 40,000 students, with the lion's share of educational responsibility falling on the Mesquite Independent School District. Mesquite ISD encompasses many of Mesquite's largest neighborhoods, especially those nearby and east of Interstate 635. Dallas ISD serves a smaller portion of the city, primarily in the northwest region north of Samuell Blvd. Both school districts operate their own policies and programs, including their Disciplinary Alternative Education Program.

Despite living outside the boundaries of Mesquite ISD, Mesquite families can request a transfer to Mesquite ISD schools before the school year. However, if their students end up in DAEP, their location far away from the district's DAEP campus might prove difficult.

If your student is at risk of DAEP placement or is currently dealing with disciplinary concerns that could remove them from their home campus, contact the Lento Law Firm today.

Mesquite Independent School District

The Mesquite Independent School District covers most of Mesquite and parts of neighboring communities, including Garland, Balch Springs, and portions of Dallas. There are over fifty schools open to Mesquite students, with some of the most prominent schools including:

• Mesquite High School
• Poteet High School
• John Horn High School
• Frank B. Agnew Middle School
• John L. Hanby Elementary School
• Don Achziger Elementary School

Mesquite ISD operates a feeder schooling system, which allows students to advance through the same schools alongside their classmates. While transfers are available, most students attending elementary schools within a local area of Mesquite will graduate from middle and high school alongside the same group of kids. For example:

• Young students attending Achziger, Henrie, and Cross Elementary Schools attend Woolley Middle School before continuing to Horn High School.
• Young students attending Porter, Price, Beasley, Austin, Kimball, and Cannaday Elementary Schools feed into Kimbrough Middle School, with students progressing to Poteet High School.

This feeder system with concrete enrollment plans means that students become accustomed to their local community, potentially more so than students attending schools in other districts. However, one risk of this system is the harm that DAEP placement can cause. DAEP completely removes a student from their home campus, limits their connection to peers, and prevents them from engaging in extracurricular activities at their school. It is incredibly challenging for young students to thrive immediately after entering an educational program devoid of the familiarity they rely on.

Mesquite ISD's Disciplinary Alternative Education Program campus is the Learning Center, educating students from elementary through high school. Similar to many DAEP campuses, the Learning Center requires students to follow strict rules, such as restrictions on bags, cell phones, jewelry, and certain types of clothing.

Mesquite ISD provides many unique benefits to students, such as fantastic athletic programs and even one of the nation's largest student radio stations. However, DAEP placement has the potential to remove young Mesquite students from their community, further harming their educational future. Call the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team today to protect your Mesquite student from DAEP after disciplinary concerns.

Dallas Independent School District in Mesquite

While most students in Mesquite attend schools within the Mesquite Independent School District, small parts of the city are zoned for the Dallas Independent School District. DISD serves students in areas west of Town East Estates and portions closer to the Dallas city line. Notable DISD schools serving portions of west Mesquite include:

• Frank Guzick Elementary School
• Adelfa Botello Callejo Elementary School
• Harold Wendell Lang Sr. Middle School
• Skyline High School

The Dallas Independent School District operates its Disciplinary Alternative Education Program at the Barbara Mann DAEP facility, recently relocated to the H.B. Bell Building on North Buckner Blvd. For many Mesquite students attending Dallas ISD schools—whether due to school transfers or school district boundaries—Dallas ISD's DAEP school is a long journey to make every single school day. This makes defending against DAEP placement even more vital, keeping Mesquite students close to home and firmly planted in their home campus.

The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has direct experience defending Mesquite students from DAEP placement, working out of a local Dallas office. Student Defense attorneys have the relevant knowledge of local district policies that you need to protect your student's enrollment. Call the Lento Law Firm today to get started.

Why the Lento Law Firm Is Your Best Choice for DAEP Proceedings in Mesquite

Every school district in Texas handles Disciplinary Alternative Education Program proceedings differently, and the same holds true for Mesquite ISD and Dallas ISD. Most families are unaware of DAEP until it's too late, and Student Defense attorneys are the best way to protect students during disciplinary proceedings. The Lento Law Firm stands out from other law firms because of its extensive experience in both Mesquite ISD and Dallas ISD disciplinary systems. Our Student Defense Team has represented students across Texas, including in Mesquite when disciplinary concerns put them at risk of DAEP placement.

The steps of the DAEP process that Mesquite families should expect include:

1. Initial Removal: Campus Behavior Coordinators (CBC) or another administrator may remove students from class and initiate disciplinary processes after students engage in behavioral misconduct.
2. Conference Notification: The CBC will notify the student's parent or guardian and schedule a conference within three days of the incident. The district will proceed with the conference regarding whether the student and their family will attend.
3. Disciplinary Conference: During the conference, the CBC will explain the reasons for removal and provide the student with an opportunity to respond. In cases of teacher removal, the teacher may also attend.
4. DAEP Decision: After the conference, the CBC will determine whether the student's behavior warrants DAEP placement or another form of disciplinary punishment. If DAEP placement is mandatory or warranted, the CBC will issue the placement order and notify students and their families of the terms, such as length of placement.
5. Placement Review: Districts automatically conduct reviews of extended DAEP placements and evaluate the Mesquite student's progress. After, district officials decide whether continued DAEP placement is warranted.
6. Appeals: Parents have the right to appeal the placement decision. Appeals begin with the campus principal and may progress to the school board before becoming final.

Despite appeals being available for Mesquite families, defending against DAEP placement should start from day one. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team should be your first call when you learn of pending disciplinary proceedings against your Mesquite student. Our attorneys will review your student's case and help fight back against accusations of misconduct that threaten their enrollment.

Protect Your Mesquite Child's Future with the Lento Law Firm

DAEP placement is a serious matter, and Mesquite students forced to enroll in the program might suffer from long-lasting effects on their academic success and emotional well-being. Whether your child attends Mesquite ISD or Dallas ISD schools, their potential should not be hindered by a disciplinary placement and removal from their home campus.

Call the Lento Law Firm today at 888.535.3686 or fill out our confidential online form to begin defending against DAEP placement in Mesquite. Our local Student Defense Team located in nearby Dallas has the experience needed to minimize your Mesquite student's disciplinary punishment after misconduct concerns.