The True Reach of School Discipline in North Carolina K-12 Schools
If your North Carolina K-12 student has ever faced discipline for something they've done in school, you may be familiar with the process. It may make sense on some level. It's not something you'd want to repeat, but the way your school reacted to cheating, plagiarism, or classroom disruption may have seemed intuitive.
Now, if your North Carolina K-12 student is facing discipline for something they were allegedly involved in outside of your school's walls, that could seem a whole lot less logical.
Yet it's happening more and more. As online activity becomes the method du jour of student communication, the lines between what a school has jurisdiction over and has no authority over are becoming blurred. Your school may learn of something untoward your student did over the weekend and, seemingly out of nowhere, decide that it can provide a punitive response.
Why do schools feel they have this authority? Why is this becoming a trend? And why should you care?
Let's say that your student is involved in an auto theft or posts something inflammatory online. Your school may or may not have explicit language in its code of conduct addressing these situations, but it's more and more likely that someone from your school will notice your student's involvement in these unwanted behaviors. Your school may be able to argue that your student violated the spirit of a school rule, or that your student's behavior reflects poorly on your school's community. And, as a result, your student may face a suspension or even an expulsion—which can make your student's entire academic future much more difficult than it needs to be.
The Lento Law Firm is here to help you avoid this outcome. Our Student Defense Team has years of experience helping students navigate complex school disciplinary processes to achieve minimal disruption to their academic plans on a nationwide level and in North Carolina. Retain our services, and we'll help you work toward a similar outcome. Call 888.535.3686 today to learn more about our services, or fill out this brief form to tell us about your case.
What Types of Off-Campus Misconduct Do North Carolina Schools Care About?
North Carolina's many varied school districts each face unique challenges, but something they all have in common is the imperative to keep students safe. They also each need to protect their academic and behavioral reputation, to some degree, to ensure they can keep their enrollment rates high.
Students who break behavioral norms or are associated with inflammatory actions can jeopardize that reputation and, of course, even impact the safety of North Carolina academic communities. Because of this, schools feel they have a right to step in and recommend restorative or punitive measures when a student is associated with unwanted behavior, regardless of where it happens.
In our experience, there are three tiers of off-campus misconduct that could attract a school's attention. They are sorted by their level of proximity and relevance to a school. They are:
- Instances of misconduct that aren't really related to school rules at all but may reflect poorly on a school. An example of this type of conduct could be a student in the Wake County Public School System being involved in an altercation at a party or being caught in the act of graffiti-ing public property.
- Instances of misconduct that are tangentially related to school rules. For example, let's say a school in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg District has a firm rule against hate speech on campus, and the school discovers that a student has been posting generally inflammatory comments and content on social media. Your school may decide to connect the dots and step in.
- Instances of misconduct that are directly connected to school rules. For example, if there is any situation, off-campus or on it, where your student is (allegedly) involved in a situation that impacts the safety of your academic community or directly targets a peer or a member of your school's faculty, your school won't hesitate to get involved.
That's what may initially attract your school's attention — and the basic rationale your school may have for getting involved with a disciplinary recommendation.
That leads to a relevant question: What type of discipline do North Carolina K-12 students face for off-campus misconduct?
Understanding Your North Carolina K-12 School's Response to Off-Campus Misconduct
Just as the types of off-campus misconduct that could attract school attention are tiered, so too are the potential punishments—generally speaking.
To learn more about your specific school's disciplinary guidelines surrounding off-campus misconduct, it's a good idea to look at your school's documentation. Your school's code of conduct, for example, should be freely available on your school's website.
However, generally, we've seen that schools tend to provide the following types of disciplinary recommendations in these cases:
- For unwanted behaviors that aren't really connected to a school's code of conduct, a school might provide a relatively mild, vague, or restorative type of punishment—for example, requesting that the involved student attend counseling, mandating some remedial education, or assigning your student community service.
- For unwanted behaviors that may fall more directly under your school's stated purview, your school may be a little more direct. Punishments in this category may include detentions or short-term suspensions.
- For unwanted behaviors that directly involve other school community members or are dangerous or violent in nature, your school may feel empowered to provide quick, severe punishments, such as longer-term suspensions or expulsions.
Here's the thing, though: If your student undergoes any type of discipline, no matter how mild it may seem, and that discipline ends up on your student's permanent record or creates gaps in your student's transcript, that could make your student's future academic and even professional plans a lot more difficult than they need to be.
What are the Short and Long-Term Consequences Associated with Off-Campus Misconduct?
When NC students face disciplinary actions because of their alleged off-campus misconduct, they may feel immediate repercussions in their day-to-day school life. If they suddenly need to attend mandatory counseling, for example, that may get in the way of their social life or participation in extracurricular activities. If they're suspended, even for a short amount of time, they may get behind in school and see a commensurate lowering of their hard-earned grades. And if anyone finds out that your student is involved in a disciplinary response to off-campus misconduct, your student's reputation could experience lasting harm.
Let's say, as an example, that a student in the Columbus City School District received a suspension after off-campus incidents.
That immediately results in an abrupt removal of the student from classes, a stark disconnect between the student and academic progress, and potentially strained interactions between classmates and teachers. Even after your student gets back to school, these challenges can leave lasting impressions.
And, of course, outside of the missed test and disruption in a student's extracurriculars, there are the longer-term repercussions to consider.
Does your child want to go to a great high school or college? Would you prefer that they're eligible for scholarships or financial aid to help make that happen?
Having a disciplinary history can impact school admissions decisions, as well as financial aid. In order to ensure that your child does not feel the consequences of their off-campus misconduct-related discipline for years, you need to work hard now to protect your student and their future.
A Quick Guide to Undergoing School Disciplinary Proceedings in North Carolina
If your student has been flagged by your school's administration for an investigation, many emotions are swirling through your head. Your student, and you, and your entire family, may be scared, nervous, frustrated, and angry.
All of that is justified, but right now, what you need to do is think as clearly as possible and move forward in a methodical way.
Here's what we recommend tackling to help your student achieve a resolution to their situation that doesn't involve the long-term consequences we detailed above:
- Retain the services of the Lento Law Firm Team. This is the best thing you can do to help your child and to retain your peace of mind both now and later. The experienced attorney of the Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm will handle all of the minutiae of your case for you, so you can spend time helping your student through this difficult situation.
- Talk to your student. Sit with them to calm them down, make them feel heard, and understand their perspective about what may or may not have happened. If you can, ask them to tell you about any challenges they may be facing in or out of school — challenges that may have exerted indirect influence on their alleged actions.
- Document everything. Whenever your school sends you information about your child's disciplinary situation, whether it's an email or by traditional mail, save it. Read it, see if you can understand more from it, but ultimately, save it.
The Lento Law Firm will be able to help you further, but completing these actions should help you help your child as effectively as possible.
Your school's disciplinary processes may be unique to your school, but for the most part, you should be able to expect some version of these events:
- An investigation
- A hearing
- A formal decision from your school regarding your student's alleged responsibility for their actions
- A formal recommendation for sanctions
However, since you're dealing with off-campus misconduct, your school may or may not follow its formal procedures. This is especially the case if your student's supposed infraction was a serious or violent one.
Once your school issues its final decision and sanction recommendation, it may feel like you've hit the end of the road. This isn't the case. You will likely be able to pursue an appeal, or a formal request for your school to reconsider its decision or recommend a lesser sanction. You'll have a small handful of business days in which to formulate and file your appeal. The Lento Law Firm Team can help you ensure you meet all applicable deadlines and that your appeal is as persuasive as it can be.
Here's How the Lento Law Firm Team Can Help You and Your Student Thrive
Students who are facing discipline related to off-campus misconduct at their North Carolina K-12 school are facing an uphill battle.
Think about it: School disciplinary processes are far from being clear-cut. While it's easy to imagine that the road ahead will contain something like an outside-of-school legal process, with standards like “innocent until proven guilty,” that's not necessarily the case.
The Lento Law Firm Team can help you and your family work toward a favorable resolution in several ways, including:
- Representation. You don't necessarily have to speak for yourself in tense hearings or in high-stakes conversations. At the Lento Law Firm, we have experience getting good results in these nerve-wracking situations.
- Negotiation. We can open direct lines of communication with your school's administration and office of general counsel to lay the groundwork for invaluable informal conversations.
- Knowledge about school processes. Our team has supported the success of students all across the nation and in North Carolina school districts. We understand the labyrinthine protocols in place at most schools like the back of our hand. We will understand your school's code of conduct and help you understand how to use your school's regulations to your advantage.
- Assistance with escalating your case. If you need to go beyond your school's documented appeal processes to obtain justice for your child, the Lento Law Firm Team will analyze your case and help you determine the best possible way forward.
Ready to protect your student and regain your peace of mind? Then retain the Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm today by calling 888.535.3686 today or by filling out this brief form.
