School Discipline Laws & Regulations by State & Category

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Statesort descending Statute
Oregon

LAWS

339.250. Duty of student to comply with rules; policies on discipline, suspension, expulsion, threats of violence or harm, firearms and physical force; student handbook or code of conduct; enforcement of policies.

(2) Each district school board shall adopt written policies for the discipline, suspension or expulsion of any refractory student. The policies:

(b) Must require consideration of the age of a student and the past pattern of behavior of a student prior to imposing the suspension or expulsion of a student.

(c) Must limit the use of expulsion to the following circumstances:

(A) For conduct that poses a threat to the health or safety of students or school employees;

(B) When other strategies to change student conduct have been ineffective, except that expulsion may not be used to address truancy; or

(C) When the expulsion is required by law.

(d) In addition to any limitations imposed by paragraph (c) of this subsection, for a student who is in fifth grade or lower, must limit the use of out-of-school suspension or of expulsion to the following circumstances:

(A) For nonaccidental conduct causing serious physical harm to a student or school employee;

(B) When a school administrator determines, based upon the administrator's observation or upon a report from a school employee, that the student's conduct poses a direct threat to the health or safety of students or school employees; or

(C) When the suspension or expulsion is required by law.

(e) When an out-of-school suspension is imposed as provided under paragraph (d) of this subsection, must require the school district to take steps to prevent the recurrence of the behavior that led to the out-of-school suspension and return the student to a classroom setting so that the disruption of the student's academic instruction is minimized.

(f) Must be limited so that:

(A) The duration of an expulsion may not be more than one calendar year.

(B) The duration of a suspension may not be more than 10 school days.

(g) Notwithstanding ORS 336.010, may require a student to attend school during nonschool hours as an alternative to suspension if the total number of hours does not exceed the equivalent of 10 school days.

(7) Each district school board shall adopt a written policy involving firearms, as defined in 18 U.S.C. 921. The policy shall:

(b) Allow exceptions:

(A) For courses, programs and activities approved by the school district that are conducted on school property, including, but not limited to, hunter safety courses, Reserve Officer Training Corps programs, firearm-related sports or firearm-related vocational courses; and

(B) Identified by and adopted by the State Board of Education by rule.

(c) Allow a superintendent of a school district to:

(A) Modify the expulsion requirement for a student on a case-by-case basis.

339.252. Child with disability continues to be entitled to free appropriate public education if removed for disciplinary reasons; due process procedures.

(1) As used in this section, “child with a disability” has the meaning given that term in ORS 343.035.

(2) A child with a disability continues to be entitled to a free appropriate public education if the child has been removed for disciplinary reasons from the child's current educational placement for more than 10 school days in a school year.

(3) A disciplinary removal is considered a change in educational placement and the school district shall follow special education due process procedures under ORS 343.155(5) if:

(a) The removal is for more than 10 consecutive school days; or

(b) The child is removed for more than 10 cumulative school days in a school year, and those removals constitute a pattern based on the length and total time of removals and the proximity of the removals to one another.

(4) A child with a disability shall not be removed for disciplinary reasons under subsection(3) of this section for misconduct that is a manifestation of the child's disability, except as provided under ORS 343.177.

(5) Notwithstanding ORS 339.250(5)(h) or(7)(c)(B), a school district shall provide a free appropriate public education in an alternative setting to a child with a disability even if the basis for expulsion was a weapon violation pursuant to ORS 339.250(7).

(6) School personnel may consider any unique circumstances on a case-by-case basis when determining whether to order a change in placement for a child with a disability who violates a code of student conduct.

REGULATIONS

581-015-2415. Disciplinary removals of more than 10 school days (pattern or consecutive).

(1) A disciplinary removal is considered a change in educational placement and the school district must follow special education due process procedures if:

(a) The removal will be for more than 10 consecutive school days (e.g. expulsion); or

(b) The child will be removed for more than 10 cumulative school days from their current educational placement in a school year, and those removals constitute a pattern under OAR 581-015-2410(2).

(2) School personnel may consider any unique circumstances on a case-by-case basis when determining whether to order a disciplinary removal under subsection (1) for a child with a disability who violates a code of conduct.

(3) Manifestation determination. Within 10 school days of any decision to change the placement of a child with a disability because of a violation of a code of student conduct, the school district must determine whether the child's behavior is a manifestation of the student's disability in accordance with OAR 581-015-2420.

(4) Manifestation. If the determination under subsection (3) is that the child's behavior is a manifestation of the child's disability, the school district must:

(a) Return the child to the placement from which the child was removed, unless:

(A) The parent and school district agree to a change of placement as part of the modification of the behavioral intervention plan under subsection (4)(b);

(B) The school district removes the child to an interim alternative educational setting under OAR 581-015-2425 for a weapons or drug violation or for infliction of serious bodily injury; or

(C) The school district obtains an order from an administrative law judge under OAR 581-015-2430 allowing a change in placement to an interim alternative educational setting for injurious behavior; and

(b) Either:

(A) Conduct a functional behavioral assessment, unless the school district conducted a functional behavioral assessment before the behavior occurred that prompted the disciplinary action, and implement a behavior intervention plan; or

(B) If the student already has a behavior plan, review the behavioral intervention plan and modify it, as necessary, to address the behavior.

(5) No manifestation. If the determination under subsection (3) is that the child's behavior is not a manifestation of the child's disability:

(a) The school district may proceed with disciplinary action applicable to children without disabilities under section (1) of this rule, in the same manner and for the same duration in which the procedures would be applied to children without disabilities.

(b) If the school district takes such action applicable to all children, the school district must:

(A) On the date on which the decision is made to remove the student under subsection (5), notify the parents of that decision and provide the parents with notice of procedural safeguards under OAR 581-015-2315.

(B) Provide services to the student in an interim alternative educational setting, determined by the IEP team, in accordance with OAR 581-015-2435; and

(C) Provide, as appropriate, a functional behavioral assessment, and behavior intervention services and modifications that are designed to address the behavior violation so that it does not recur.

(6) Placement pending due process hearing. If a parent requests a due process hearing because of a disagreement with the manifestation determination or any decision about placement related to the disciplinary removal in section (1) of this rule, the child remains in the interim alternative educational setting pending the decision of the administrative law judge under OAR 581-015-2445, or until the end of the disciplinary removal under subsection (1), whichever occurs first, unless the parent and school district agree otherwise.

581-015-2420. Manifestation determination.

(1) In determining whether the child's behavior is a manifestation of the child's disability, the school district, the parent, and relevant members of the IEP team (as determined by the parent and the district) must review all relevant information in the student's file, including the child's IEP, any teacher observations, and any relevant information provided by the parents to determine:

(a) If the conduct in question was caused by, or had a direct and substantial relationship to, the child's disability; or

(b) If the conduct in question was the direct result of the school district's failure to implement the IEP.

(2) If the school district, the parent, and relevant members of the IEP team determine that either subsection (1)(a) or (b) is applicable for the child, the conduct must be determined to be a manifestation of the child's disability.

(3) If the basis for the team's determination is that the school district did not implement the child's IEP, the school district must take immediate steps to remedy those deficiencies.

581-021-0065. Suspension.

(5) School district boards shall limit suspension to a specific maximum number of days. That maximum shall not exceed ten school days.

(6) School district boards or designated representatives shall specify the methods and conditions, if any, under which the student's school work can be made up. Students shall be allowed to make up school work upon their return from the suspension if that work reflects achievement over a greater period of time than the length of the suspension. For example, the students shall be allowed to make up final, mid-term, and unit examinations, without an academic penalty, but it is within the districts' discretion as to whether the students may be allowed to make up daily assignments, laboratory experiments, class discussions or presentations.

(7) In special circumstances a suspension may be continued until some specific pending action occurs, such as a physical or mental examination, or incarceration by court action.