Students, whether they are in school, college or university, face many concerns and challenges during their years of study. The pressure to perform well academically is already a daunting challenge, but it is compounded by other challenges such as maintaining healthy social relationships, doing group projects, holding down a part-time job, learning how to live independently, and so on.
Student life can be tough, and school authorities make it no easier. They try to uphold their academic and non-academic rules and regulations strictly and dole out various punishments to students who appear to be flouting these rules. These punishments can be as severe as dismissal or rustication.
The smartest thing to do if you or your student are being held responsible for misconduct or are facing any other issue related to education law is to consult a special education lawyer immediately. Joseph D. Lento has over 20 years of experience helping students navigate tricky issues related to student discipline and is available to represent students across the Charleston metro area.
Charleston Metropolitan Area
The Charleston metropolitan area in South Carolina encompasses the cities of Charleston, North Charleston, Summerville, and surrounding suburban areas. Roughly 400 square kilometers in area, it includes the counties of Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester and has a population of about 800,000 residents. Also referred to as the Tri-County Area, the Charleston metro area has some of the most US military bases. The area also has one of the highest concentrations of top-ranked public schools in the state of South Carolina and is home to many public and private colleges and universities.
This may seem daunting to some attorneys, who limit their practice to a particular city or a smaller area within the metro area, but not education attorney advisor Joseph D. Lento. Attorney Lento has over 20 years of experience representing students in various education defense cases, including student disciplinary defense, issues of academic progression or other academic issues, in the Charleston metro area and elsewhere. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge and years of experience successfully defending students and defeating or minimizing the charges against them.
Student Concerns in Charleston Metro Area
Students in school or college can face boundless challenges related to academics, social life, interpersonal relationships with peers, educators, and friends, mental and emotional health, and other logistical challenges. Just as students elsewhere, students studying in the Charleston metro area have many concerns, some of which are unique to the area. Many students move away from home to study at a university and may find it difficult to adapt to life in a metropolitan city or a different state than what they grew up in.
Coming to terms with the cultural differences of living in Charleston, keeping up good grades, and dealing with logistical issues such as housing and transport can take a toll on many students. Student life can exacerbate existing conditions and issues or give rise to new ones – resulting in students finding themselves in disciplinary trouble.
Other times, owing to no fault of the student, they may find themselves involved in academic progression or misconduct issues due to an error or oversight on the part of school authorities. An experienced and skilled education attorney advisor like Joseph Lento can help your student deal with these issues and defeat or minimize the charges against them. Mr. Lento and the Lento Law Firm are well-equipped to deal with any and all issues of education law and student defense, including but not limited to academic issues, misconduct, Title IX violations, and more.
Charleston Metro Area Schools
National education attorney advisor Joseph Lento and his team at the Lento Law Firm are well-experienced in education law and can help defend your student against any academic or non-academic charges school authorities may levy against them. They are also available to represent your student in any education law issue and can defend students in the following universities in the Charleston metro area, to name a few:
- Charleston Southern University,
- Miller-Motte College,
- The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina,
- College of Charleston,
- Medical University of South Carolina,
- Ashby Hall – Charleston Southern University,
- Southeastern College – Charleston,
- East Coast Polytechnic Institute,
- Webster University,
- Trident Technical College,
- Saint Andrews University,
- Lowcountry Graduate Centre,
- College of Nursing at Charleston
- Park University at Joint Base Charleston,
- St. Leo University,
- Augusta University.
National education lawyer Mr. Lento and his student defense team at the Lento Law Firm are also available to effectively represent students in kindergarten through grade twelve programs in public school districts across the Charleston metropolitan area, including, to list just a few:
- Hope Scholars Academy,
- Charlestowne Academy,
- Charleston Classical School,
- Owens Christian Academy,
- Crown Leadership Academy – North Charleston Campus,
- Saint John Catholic School,
- St. Peter's Academy,
- Cathedral Academy,
- Northside Christian School,
- Riverpoint Christian Academy,
- Pineville Preparatory School,
- Summerville Catholic School,
- Trinity Classical Academy,
- Charis Academy,
- Northwood Academy,
- Faith Christian School and Preschool,
- Ridge Christian Academy,
- Summerville High School,
- Bethany Child Development Centre,
- Tiny Tots Tech Pre-School,
- St. Luke's Children's Centre,
- Cadence Academy Preschool,
- Springview Academy,
- James H Spann Elementary School,
- Nexton Kindercare.
Education Law and Student Defense in Charleston Metro Area
The authorities at schools and colleges are keen to provide a safe and academically sound environment to their students, which may sometimes make them overzealous in dealing with issues or perceived issues of misconduct. They can accuse students of wrongdoing such as academic, behavioral, or sexual misconduct or hold them responsible for other academic and non-academic issues. Having an experienced education lawyer on your side can ensure school authorities don't get away with wrongfully implicating your student in a disciplinary issue and do not pass out an unfair verdict. Mr. Lento and his team can ensure your student's rights are upheld.
Academic Progression Issues
Competitive and premier educational institutions have high standards to uphold and want to naturally ensure that their students produce work of the finest quality and get good grades. They expect students to meet expectations regarding coursework and exhibit strong academic performance.
Passing courses, earning credits, and completing assignments satisfactorily are the most basic things expected of students. When a student does not meet these expectations, schools may issue academic warnings or even suspend or expel a student based on their academic performance.
In addition to internal standards, schools that receive federal funding also have to fulfill federal requirements and maintain SAP (satisfactory academic progress) standards.
This pressure can take its toll on students whose performance may slip, resulting in disciplinary action against them.
A premier student defense attorney advisor like Mr. Lento can guide your student through these tough situations, ensuring their educational institution doesn't unfairly dismiss or suspend them. School authorities can make mistakes in grading and calculating grades or may not take mitigating circumstances like a family or health emergency into consideration.
Retaining an education lawyer like Mr. Lento and his team helps ensure that your student is not treated unfairly and does not have their rights violated. He and his team can also help defeat unwarranted charges against your student and minimize or get rid of any permanent damage to their academic record.
Academic Misconduct Issues
Educational institutions have a reputation to uphold, and academic integrity is one of the tenets they hold dear. When students exhibit dishonesty or unsavory academic behavior such as plagiarism, cheating, bribing an instructor, or hiring someone else to complete an assignment on their behalf – schools and colleges feel compelled to come down hard on this sort of behavior.
These policies are often outlined in the school's honor codes or academic guidelines, such as the Student Handbook at the University of Charleston.
School and college authorities can mete out punishment ranging from a warning to suspension and even expulsion. This can have a severely adverse impact on a student's academic record – marring their college transcripts forever and often disqualifying them from many fellowships, scholarships, or advanced study programs.
But school authorities are not always accurate or even fair in levying charges against students. They may mistakenly accuse a student of wrongdoing, identify the wrong student as the perpetrator, or even unfairly punish a student in a disproportionate manner.
An experienced education lawyer like Joseph Lento can help defeat any unwarranted and unfair charges against your student and help defend them even if they are fully or partially in the wrong. Consider getting in touch with the Lento Law Firm to discuss your student's defense if they find themselves in academic trouble.
Behavioral Misconduct Issues
Schools and colleges justifiably tend to want to maintain a peaceful and calm environment that is conducive to studying. They want their campuses to be a safe space for students and tend to frown upon any criminal or violent behavior, such as vandalism, fighting, bullying, sexual harassment, property damage, drug misuse, computer misuse, and any other unsavory behavior. These acts are often prohibited according to codes of conduct such as the Student Conduct Code at Park University.
Punishment for these behaviors can range from a warning, reduction of privileges, suspension, and dismissal. But again, school authorities can and do make mistakes in maintaining discipline and punishing unwanted behavior. They may have biases or preconceived notions against a student, they may be misinformed, or they may even completely misread a situation and accuse the wrong student of misconduct.
Whatever the nature of the charges against your student, do not take such issues lightly, and do not be prepared to let them deal with it alone. A skilled educational lawyer can often minimize damage in these instances, helping defeat the charges against your student.
There may be many reasons why your student is entitled to appeal the charges against them. This can include mitigating circumstances such as a health or mental health issue, a biased instructor, or something else. Don't encourage your student to take their future lightly – retain a student defense attorney advisor right away.
Title IX Sexual Misconduct Issues
Schools, colleges, and universities that get federal funding are required to adhere to federal Title IX guidelines, which prohibit sexual harassment, sexual discrimination, and sexual assault. Additionally, schools may also have their own policies which prohibit and punish behaviors such as spreading child pornography, solicitation of prostitution, sexual bullying and blackmail, and more.
Students must be very careful to keep themselves free of any Title IX charges – as these can be extremely severe and result in strict punishment, including rustication. If your student finds themselves entangled in a case of sexual misconduct, you must consider retaining a professional student defense attorney advisor right away.
Joseph Lento and his team can help defeat such charges against your student and save their academic record and future career. Attorney Lento has over 20 years of experience in student disciplinary defense and has successfully defended students against cases of various forms of misconduct. He knows what to do in such instances and can save your student from dismissal.
The Need for An Education Attorney Advisor
Understanding school regulations and policies are not easy – especially for laypersons. Most educational institutions have their own set of complex policies and their own ways of dealing with student misconduct or other issues involving education law. But with over 20 years of experience in dealing with cases of education law, Attorney Lento is well equipped to handle such cases and help you and your student obtain a favorable outcome.
When something like this happens, your student's entire career and academic record are at stake. Do not make the mistake of trying to handle it single-handedly. Consider reaching out to the Lento Law Firm at the earliest. You can reach us at 888.535.3686 or contact us online.
