88th Annual CASCWA State Conference

The student discipline pendulum in California has swung from the “zero tolerance” days of the 1990s to a persistent mantra of interventions and other means of correction. And for good reason. Exclusionary discipline has been shown to negatively impact students and families in a variety of ways and can even rise to the level of civil rights violations. At the same time, school safety is still paramount, and schools must have the legal tools to exercise a continuum of discipline options (including expulsion) when appropriate. This presentation will provide an overview of student discipline fundamentals (i.e., the legal nuts and bolts), while highlighting best practices to avoid civil rights violations along the way.

This workshop will focus on the basic parameters of the suspension and expulsion process, with an emphasis on how to conduct a thorough investigation. Participants will have the opportunity to practice implementation of the different steps in the investigative process, including identifying the appropriate statutory offense(s) and secondary finding and collecting evidence to support a decision to suspend and recommend expulsion.