Policy: 3241
Students
Student Discipline
Introduction
The Board of the Sumner-Bonney Lake School District focuses on the educational achievement of each and every student. The District holds high expectations for all students and gives all students the opportunity to achieve personal and academic success. “Discipline” means any action taken by the school district in response to behavioral violations, including exclusionary as well as positive and supportive forms of discipline. The Board intends that this policy and procedure be implemented in a manner that supports positive school climate, maximizes instructional time, and increases equitable educational opportunities.
The purposes of this policy and accompanying procedure include:
- Engaging with school personnel, students, parents, families, and the community in decisions related to the development and implementation of discipline policies and procedures;
- Supporting students in meeting behavioral expectations, including providing for early involvement of parents, guardians, and families;
- Administering discipline in ways that respond to the needs and strengths of students and keep students in the classroom to the maximum extent possible;
- Providing educational services that students need complete their education without disruption;
- Facilitating collaboration between school personnel, students, and parents and guardians, to support successful reentry into the classroom following a suspension or expulsion;
- Ensuring fairness, equity, and due process in the administration of discipline;
- Providing a safe environment for all students and for district employees.
District Commitment
The District is committed to:
- Identifying and addressing discipline policies and practices that perpetuate educational opportunity gaps;
- Proactively implementing discipline practices that support students in meeting behavioral expectations without losing access to instruction;
The District will observe students’ fundamental rights and will administer discipline in a manner that does not:
- Unlawfully discriminate against a student on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal;
- Deprive a student of the student's constitutional right to freedom of speech and press, the constitutional right to peaceably assemble and to petition the government and its representatives for a redress of grievances, the constitutional right to the free exercise of religion and to have the student's school free from sectarian control or influence, subject to reasonable limitations upon the time, place, and manner of exercising the right;
- Deprive a student of the student's constitutional right to be secure in the student's person, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures;
- Unlawfully interfere in a student's pursuit of an education while in the custody of the school district; or
- Deprive a student of the student's right to an equal educational opportunity, in whole or in part, by a school district without due process of law.
This District’s student discipline policy and procedure is designed to provide students with a safe, healthy, and educationally sound environment. Students are expected to be aware of and comply with this policy and procedure, including behavioral expectations that respect the rights, person, and property of others. Students are also expected to pursue the required course of studies. Students and staff are expected to work together to develop a positive climate for learning.
Development and Review
Accurate and complete reporting of all disciplinary actions, including the associated student-level information, behavioral violations, and other forms of discipline the district considered or attempted, is essential for effective review of this policy; therefore, the district will ensure such reporting. The district will collect data on disciplinary actions administered in each school, as required by RCW 28A.300.042, and any additional data required under other district policies and procedures.
The District will ensure that school principals confer with certificated building employees at least annually to develop and/or review building discipline standards and review the fidelity of implementation of those standards. Each school will:
- Establish behavioral expectations with students and proactively teach expectations across various school settings.
- Develop precise definitions for problem behaviors and behavioral violations to address differences in perceptions of subjective behaviors and reduce the effect of implicit bias.
- Define the differences between minor and major behavior incidents to clarify the types of behaviors that may or may not result in classroom exclusion or are severe enough that an administrator needs to be involved.
- Identify a continuum of best practices and strategies for classroom-based responses that building staff should administer before or instead of classroom exclusion to support students in meeting behavioral expectations.
School handbooks, codes of conduct, and building discipline standards must not conflict with this policy, accompanying procedures, or other Board policies. A school’s building discipline standards must be annually approved by the District Superintendent or designee.
School principals will ensure teachers and other school personnel receive adequate support to effectively implement a continuum of identified best practices and strategies that:
- Focus on prevention to reduce the use of exclusionary discipline practices;
- Allow the exercise of professional judgment and skill sets; and
- May be adapted to individual student needs in a culturally responsive manner.
The District will periodically review and further develop this policy and procedure with the participation of school personnel, students, parents, guardians, families, and the community. As part of this development and review process, the district will use disaggregated data collected under RCW 28A.300.042 to monitor the impact of student discipline practices as well as to improve fairness and equity in the administration of student discipline. Discipline data must be disaggregated by:
- School.
- Student groups, including by gender, grade level, race/ethnicity (including further disaggregation of federal race and ethnicity categories in accordance with RCW 28A.300.042(1), low income, English language learner, migrant, special education, Section 504, foster care, and homeless.
- Behavioral violation.
- Discipline types, including classroom exclusion, in-school suspension, short-term suspension, long-term suspension, emergency removal, and expulsion.
The District will consider student program status and demographic information (i.e. gender, grade-level, low-income, English language learner, migrant, special education, Section 504, foster care, and homeless) when disaggregating student race and ethnicity data to identify any within-group variation in school discipline experiences and outcomes of diverse student groups. This process may include reviewing data to prevent and address discrimination against students in protected classes identified in chapters 28A.640 and 28A.642 RCW, however, the District will ensure it reviews disaggregated discipline data in accordance with WAC 392-190-048 at least annually.
The District will support each school to:
- set at least one goal annually for improving equitable student outcomes;
- create an actions plan or plans;
- evaluate previous goals and action plans; and
- revise goals and action plans, based on evaluations.
Schools will share identified goals and action plans with all staff, students, parents, guardians, families, and the community.
The district has also established procedures to address grievances of parents, guardians, or students related to other forms of discipline, classroom exclusion, and exclusion from transportation or extra- curricular activity. The grievance procedures include an opportunity for the student to share his or her perspective and explanation regarding the behavioral violation.
Distribution of policies and procedures
The school district will make its discipline policies and procedures available to families and the community. The district will annually provide its discipline policies and procedures to all district personnel, students, and parents, guardians, and families, which may require language assistance for students, parents and guardians with limited-English proficiency under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The school district will ensure district employees and contractors are knowledgeable of the discipline policies and procedures. At the building level, schools will annually provide the current building discipline standards, developed as stated above, to all school personnel, students, parents, guardians, and families, which may require language assistance for students, parents and guardians with limited-English proficiency under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Schools will ensure all school personnel are knowledgeable of the school building discipline standards.
Application
This policy and accompanying procedure will be construed in a manner consistent with Washington law as stated in WAC 392-400-020.
Cross References:
2121- Substance abuse Program
2161- Special Education and Related Services for Eligible Students
2162- Education of STudents with Disabilities Under Section 504 Of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
3122- Excused and Unexcused Absences
3200- Rights and Responsibilities
3210- Nondiscrimination
3244- Prohibition of Corporal Punishment
3520- Student Fees, Fines, or Charges
4210- Regulation of Dangerous Weapons on School Premises
Legal References:
42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq. Civil Rights Act of 1964
34 CFR Part 100.3 Regulations implementing Civil Rights Act of 1964
Chapter 392-400, WAC Pupils
WAC 392-190-048 Access to course offerings – Student discipline
Chapter 28A.320, RCW Provisions applicable to all districts
Chapter 28A.600 RCW, Students
RCW 28A.400.110 Principal to assure appropriate student discipline — Building discipline standards — Classes to improve classroom management skills
RCW 28A.400.100 Principals and vice principals- Employment of- Qualifications- Duties
Chapter 28A.225, RCW Compulsory school attendance and admission
RCW 28A.150.240 Certificated teaching and administrative staff as accountable for classroom teaching — Scope — Responsibilities — Penalty
RCW 9.41.280 Possessing dangerous weapons on school facilities — Penalty — Exceptions
Adopted 7/2019; Revised 5/2022, 11/2023
Adopted: 7/6/22