Northern Mariana Islands School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Parental Notification

Northern Mariana Islands School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Parental Notification

Category: Monitoring and Accountability
Subcategory: Parental Notification
State: Northern Mariana Islands

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Northern Mariana Islands

LAWS

No relevant laws found.

REGULATIONS

§ 60-20-408. Employees of Department of Public Safety on campus.

Whenever a student is on campus during school operating hours and is wanted by the Department of Public Safety (DPS) for an alleged offense(s) not reported by the school, the following guidelines shall apply:

(a) In all cases, upon arriving on campus, DPS personnel must report first to the principal's office to inform the principal of the student(s) sought by DPS and to explain the purpose of their visit to the school. The only exception to first reporting to the principal's office is when there is a crime in progress. DPS then has the right to make an immediate arrest and report afterwards to the principal's office. The principal shall immediately notify the parent/guardian of a student who has been arrested by DPS on campus.

(b) In cases involving a felony when DPS personnel wish to question a student during school hours, the parents must be informed before such questioning may begin. The principal may be present during the questioning. A student may be released to DPS if DPS demonstrates to the school that such release is necessary in the interests of law enforcement and public safety, such as a copy of a warrant or indictment. The principal shall immediately notify the parent/guardian of a student who has been released to DPS.

(c) In cases involving a misdemeanor, DPS will make every effort to locate and question a student involved in or knowledgeable of a misdemeanor outside of school operating hours and will only resort to questioning a student during school hours when all other methods fail. In the event that questioning a student during school hours is necessary, the parent must be informed before such questioning may begin and DPS may only question a student when a principal is present. A principal does not need to release a student to DPS in cases involving a misdemeanor.

§ 60-20-448. Suspension.

(e) When a student is suspended, the principal/designee shall attempt to reach the student's parent/guardian to inform them of the school's action and to request that they come to school for the student. If the parent/guardian is unable to come for the student, the principal/designee may ask the parent/guardian for permission to send the student home. If the parent/guardian cannot be reached or if the above request is refused, the student must remain on school property until the close of the school day.

(f) The student's parent or guardian shall also be notified, in writing, on the day the

suspension decision is made of the reason(s) for the suspension and the right of the student or parent or guardian to appeal the suspension to the Commissioner of Education within ten calendar days of the notification. Copies of all notifications shall be sent to the Commissioner of Education and the PSS legal counsel.

(g) The appeal procedures for suspensions of less than ten days are described in section (h) of this section (below). The appeal procedures for suspensions of ten days or more are described in § 60-20-452.

(h) If the parent and/or student wishes to appeal a suspension of ten days or less, the Commissioner of Education or a designee who shall be someone other than a principal, administrator or teacher in the suspended student's school, shall meet with the student and/or the parent or guardian to discuss the suspension. If the Commissioner of Education or designee finds that the student was suspended unfairly or unjustly, or that the suspension was inappropriate given the nature of the alleged offense, or that the student suffered undue consequences or penalties, the suspension may be overturned and any reference to the suspension in school records will be expunged. Such findings shall be made in writing within ten school days of the conference.

§ 60-20-458. Enrollment or return following suspension and/or expulsion.

(a)(1) No student shall be readmitted, or permitted to enroll or otherwise attend school (except as may otherwise be required by law), following a suspension or expulsion from any school until the PSS has conducted a conference to review the conduct that resulted in the expulsion or suspension, and any remedial actions needed to prevent any future occurrences of such or related conduct

(2) Participants in such pre-admission conferences will include:(i) Any teacher directly involved in the suspension offense.

(ii) The student

(iii) The parent/guardian.

(iv) The representative of any agency having legal jurisdiction, care, custody, or control of the student.

(v) PSS staff members designated by the Commissioner/ designee

(b) The PSS shall notify in writing the parent/guardian and all other parties of the time, place, and agenda of any such conference. However, failure of any party to attend this conference shall not preclude holding the conference.

(c) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, no student shall be readmitted or enrolled in a regular program of instruction if:

(1) The student has been convicted of one of the offenses listed below.

(2) The student been charged with one of the offenses and there has been no final judgment.

(3) A juvenile petition has been filed alleging that the student committed an act, which if committed by an adult, would be one of the offenses listed below, and there has been no final judgment; or

(4) The student has been adjudicated to have committed an act, which if committed by an adult, would be one of the offenses listed below.

(d) Offenses to which subsection (c) applies

(1) First degree murder under the laws of the CNMI

(2) Second degree murder under the laws of the CNMI

(3) First degree assault under the laws of the CNMI

(4) Forcible rape under the laws of the CNMI

(5) Forcible sodomy under the laws of the CNMI

(6) Robbery in the first degree under the laws of the CNMI

(7) Distribution of drugs to a minor under the laws of the CNMI

(8) Arson under the laws of the CNMI

(9) Kidnapping under the laws of the CNMI.

(e)(1) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the PSS from imposing discipline under its regulations for conduct underlying the above-listed offenses, even if the adult charge or juvenile charge has been dismissed, or the student has been acquitted or adjudicated not to have committed such acts in a criminal or juvenile court _ if by a preponderance of the evidence, it can be established that the student engaged in the underlying conduct. The PSS may enroll a student otherwise excluded under this section, in an alternative education program if the PSS determines that such enrollment is appropriate.

(2) Student denied enrollment because of conviction of one of the acts set out in this section or due to an existing suspension or expulsion from another school will be advised of the reasons for denial of enrollment and will be given an opportunity to respond to those reasons.

§ 60-20-495. Reporting requirements.

1) The principal or his/her designee shall verbally inform the student's parents or guardians of the restraint as soon as possible, and by written report no later than three school working days following the use of restraint.