DAEP Placement and Expulsion: Different, But Similarly Serious, Disciplinary Measures for Students in Texas

Whether a student or guardian is in Dallas, Lubbock, Houston, Corpus Christi, or elsewhere in Texas, they surely know what “expulsion” means, and that it means something serious. However, far fewer know about Texas’s Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs (DAEPs), but they should. When a student is accused of serious wrongdoing, administrators may choose between these two disciplinary options—pupils and guardians in Texas must understand the distinction.

Make no mistake: Placing a student in a DAEP and expelling the student are both severe disciplinary measures. Each has the potential to damage a student academically, behaviorally, socially, and even professionally (later in life). That said, expulsion is generally considered the more punitive of the two measures, as it is a more complete break between the student and their school (and school district).

If you or your student has been accused of serious or persistent misconduct, they might be vulnerable to one or both of these disciplinary measures. We will fight for the best possible outcome for the student, whether that is negotiating DAEP instead of expulsion, negotiating even less severe discipline, or preventing discipline altogether.

Few things are more pressing than defending a student from possible expulsion. Do not wait to call the LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.

Quick Facts About DAEP Placement

Texas law permits schools to respond to disciplinary cases in several ways. Placing a student in a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program, or DAEP, is one of those ways. Some of the most important facts about DAEP placement are:

• When a student is placed in a DAEP, they are removed from their school and sent to a new facility, usually on another campus
• The purpose of DAEPs is to rehabilitate the student and correct behaviors that have led to them being removed from their original school
• Some offenses require mandatory placement of a student in a DAEP, with terroristic threats and assault on school property being among those offenses
• Many cases of DAEP placement are not mandatory, but are instead electively enforced by a principal or other administrator tasked with disciplining students

Keep in mind that DAEP placement is a concern for students in San Antonio, Austin, Brownsville, El Paso, and anywhere else where there is a public or charter school. This fact shows why every guardian and student should understand what DAEP placement is and how DAEP placement differs from expulsion.

Quick Facts About Expulsion

Throughout modern American history, being expelled was a sign that a student was truly in crisis. Though this is not universally true, being expelled from one’s school remains a signal that the school’s administrators are at wits’ end—or that the student is accused of an offense so serious that it warrants immediate removal from the school or district.

Some of the facts that every student and guardian should know about expulsion are:

• While Texas students of all ages can be placed in a DAEP, students can only be expelled if they are ten years or older (unless they possess a firearm in school)
• Like DAEP placement, expulsion can be either mandatory or discretionary
• When a student is expelled, they are removed from the school and the district
• Expulsions cannot generally span more than one year, except in cases where the student is considered a threat or an extended expulsion is deemed to be in the student’s best interests

A student might be expelled if they engage in a pattern of disruptive behavior. Generally, though, they will be assigned to a DAEP multiple times to rectify the disruptive behavior before being expelled from the district.

Which Is Considered the More Serious Disciplinary Measure?

Expulsion is considered the more severe form of discipline when compared with DAEP placement for several reasons that include:

• Expulsion is purely punitive, while DAEP placement has a rehabilitative intent: Though students will undoubtedly feel like they are being punished whenever they are removed from their classroom, the stated purpose of DAEPs is to rehabilitate the student, or at least correct undesirable behaviors. Expulsion, on the other hand, is simply removing the student from their school and, in cases of public schools, the district. The district is not rehabilitating the student because they are no longer responsible for the student.
• DAEPs are still part of the school district: Though a student is taken out of their regular school when they are placed in a DAEP, they remain in the school district. The school is not severing ties with the student, which makes DAEP placement a less extreme form of discipline than expulsion.
• Expulsion can lead directly to the juvenile justice system: When a student is expelled, they may be placed in a Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Program (JJAEP). A county’s juvenile board, rather than the school district, oversees such programs. Placement in these programs can be ordered by the court or by any district employee who enacts a mandatory or discretionary expulsion.
• There is no guarantee the student will be able to return to the school or district after being expelled: While most students are expelled for no more than one year, the district has the right to keep the student out for even longer. This might mean keeping the student in a JJAEP. Though Texas law requires that school districts place a defined duration on an expulsion, it’s not guaranteed that a student will return to their regular school after their initial expulsion ends.

Being removed from school and placed in a DAEP can disrupt a student’s learning and social life, but it is not quite as serious as being expelled. When a student is in DAEP, there is an expectation that they will return to the classroom sooner rather than later. When expelled, a student may be removed for a year or more, and perhaps even longer.

While the LLF National Law Firm Team views each of these forms of discipline as serious, we’re under no false assumptions—if you ask us which is more severe, we will tell you it’s expulsion.

Why a Student Might Be Placed in a DAEP

Students can be placed in a DAEP mandatorily, and may face mandatory removal if they’re accused of:

• Using a weapon (other than a firearm, as having a gun generally triggers expulsion)
• Making threats or engaging in certain forms of bullying that rise to the level of mandatory removal from school
• Possessing alcohol or illicit drugs
• Actions that cause bodily injury to another person
• Certain other serious offenses

Texas law contains a detailed list of offenses that qualify for mandatory removal of a student for placement in a DAEP.

There is also a lengthy list of offenses that could lead to a student being placed in DAEP, although this is not always the case. The designated decision-maker within a school or district must decide whether to place a student in a DAEP if they are accused of:

• Persistent disruptive behavior that interferes with order, learning, or both
• Engaging in one or more minor physical altercations
• Engaging in a pattern of verbal alterations or defiance, particularly with authority figures
• Possessing prohibited items, like vapes
• Repeated dress code violations, truancy, or other rule violations

Students who break school or district rules in a serious way, or who are accused of habitual disruptive behavior, may be placed in a DAEP.

Why a Student Might Be Expelled

Educational authorities in Texas also have some leeway in whether they expel a student, including when:

• The student makes a threat (or multiple threats)
• The student has been assigned to a DAEP multiple times, but continues to break school rules
• The student commits drug or alcohol violations (which may include possession or sale of substances)
• The student gets into one or more fights

The LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team is a priceless resource for all students, but especially when educators are deciding whether to expel a student. We do everything in our power to convince the authorities not to expel the student.

There are also cases in which expulsion is mandatory.

Mandatory offenses that may lead to expulsion are:

• Bringing a firearm to school
• Arson
• Sexual assault
• Aggravated assault
• Attempted murder
• Aggravated kidnapping
• Other offenses, including some that can expose the student to criminal charges

Even if your student seems to face mandatory expulsion, you must remember one word: Alleged. Many students are falsely accused of wrongdoing that could lead to their expulsion. We take full advantage of students’ legally binding opportunity to explain and defend themselves.

The Damage and Downside of DAEP Placement

Though DAEP placement is the lesser sanction when compared with expulsion, never mistake it for a “light” punishment. DAEP placement is anything but a lenient sanction, as it can:

• Stigmatize the student, who may eventually return to their school only to be remembered as the person who had to go to a DAEP
• Abruptly remove the student from their friends, counselors, educational mentors, and others in their social circle—this can cause intense loneliness for the student
• Place the student in a far inferior learning environment, as DAEPs are often more focused on behavioral improvement than academics
• Actually worsen the student’s behavior, as they may experience a catastrophic mental health downturn as a result of DAEP placement

Furthermore, DAEP placement may remain on the student’s disciplinary record for universities to see. Universities may elect not to admit a student who has been placed in a DAEP. This outcome is particularly unjust when a student is placed in a DAEP at a young age, as their mistakes or struggles as an immature youth might truly alter the course of their life.

The (Even More) Damaging Cost of Expulsion

Knowing how harmful DAEP placement can be for a student, it speaks volumes that expulsion is even more harmful.

Being expelled carries all the same consequences as DAEP placement, from social stigma to a tarnished disciplinary record, mental health challenges, and lesser prospects for admission to good universities.

With expulsion, those consequences have the potential to be even more severe, as everyone who understands Texas’s educational system will recognize that the expelled student has allegedly done something serious enough to warrant expulsion, not just DAEP placement.

A Few Notes About Charter and Private Schools’ Handling of Student Discipline

Before we discuss how the LLF National Law Firm Team will work hard to prevent your student from being expelled (and possibly even placed in DAEP), just note that:

• Charter and private schools might handle decisions about DAEP placement and expulsion a bit differently than traditional public schools
• While charter schools are within the public school system, their leaders generally have more leeway to dictate disciplinary policy (and may have final say in all disciplinary decisions)
• Private schools are private, and therefore generally don’t have DAEPs and have complete autonomy over their disciplinary decisions and processes

The majority of students in Texas are in the public school system, and therefore fall under Texas law’s rules for expulsion, DAEP placement, and general discipline.

Students in Texas Facing Any Type of Discipline Should Hire the LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team—You Deserve Due Process

Texas law gives students the right to due process before they can be removed from their school, either through DAEP placement or expulsion. The LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team will enforce that right on your behalf, and you should hire us because:

• We know the intricate details of Texas laws and procedures related to DAEP placement, expulsion, discipline in general, and students’ rights
• Our team has been advocating for and protecting students accused of misconduct for years—we are passionate and serious about what we do
• When a student is facing discipline as severe as DAEP placement or expulsion, there is more than enough reason to hire a professional to fight for them
• Our attorneys have extensive experience negotiating with administrators, dealing with schools’ legal counsel, guiding students through the disciplinary funnel, successfully appealing, and enacting resolutions in other traditional and untraditional ways

When students and their guardians trust us to protect and serve them, we fulfill our duty. Call the LLF National Law Firm Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss how our firm will be the reliable, aggressive team you and your student need.