| Grant County School |
| Bylaws & Policies |
2461 - DISCIPLINE FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS
The Grant County Board of Education shall:
| A. | protect the rights of an eligible student with a disability whenever removal from the educational placement is considered as a disciplinary action; | |
| B. | proactively design and implement positive behavioral interventions, strategies and supports to address behaviors that interfere with learning; | |
| C. | provide instruction to assist the student to access and progress in the general curriculum and meet the goals in the student’s IEP. Specific methods for implementing this policy shall be stated in the AG 2461. |
Authority of School Personnel for Removals of not more than Ten (10) School Days at a Time.
| A. | School personnel may, to the extent removal would be applied to students without disabilities, remove a student with a disability from the current educational placement for not more then ten (10) school days at a time for violations of school rules. | |
| B. | School personnel may order additional removals from the current educational placement of not more then ten (10) school days at a time in the same school year for separate incidents of misconduct, as long as the additional removal is: |
| 1. | not a change of placement; | ||
| 2. | administered for the same amount of time as for non-disabled students. |
| C. | School personnel, in consultation with the student’s special education teacher, determine the extent to which services are necessary to enable the student to appropriately progress in the general curriculum and appropriately advance toward achieving the goals set out in the student’s IEP when removals accumulate to more than ten (10) school days in a school year and are not a change of placement. | |
| D. | Within ten (10) business days of the first time the student is removed from school for more than ten (10) cumulative school days in a school year or commencing a removal that constitutes a change of placement as defined herein, including a removal for weapons or controlled substances/drugs, the County shall: |
| 1. | convene an IEP meeting to develop an assessment plan if the student has not previously had a functional behavioral assessment and behavior intervention plan; | ||
| 2. | reconvene an IEP meeting as soon as practicable after completing the assessments required by the plan to develop interventions that address the removal behavior and implement those interventions; | ||
| 3. | if the student already has a behavior intervention plan, convene an IEP meeting to review the plan and its implementation, and modify the plan and its implementation as necessary to address the removal behavior. |
| E. | If a student who has a behavior intervention plan and who has been removed from school for more than ten (10) school days in a school year is subjected to a removal that does not constitute a change of placement, the IEP team members shall individually review the behavior intervention plan and its implementation to determine if modifications are necessary. If one (1) or more of the team members believe that modifications are needed, the team shall meet to modify the plan and its implementation, to the extent the team determines necessary. |
Change of Placement.
| A. | A change of placement from the current educational placement occurs if: |
| 1. | the removal is for more than ten (10) consecutive school days (including removal to an interim alternative educational setting); | ||
| 2. | the removals are administered in a series that constitutes a pattern because they accumulate to more than ten (10) school days in a school year, and because of factors such as the length of each removal, the total amount of time the student has been removed and the proximity of removals to one another. |
| B. | Whenever a change of placement is being considered, the County Board shall: |
| 1. | immediately provide the parent with written prior notice of the decision to remove the student and the procedural safeguards notice; | ||
| 2. | immediately schedule an IEP meeting to be held within ten (10) school days of the change of placement removal decision to determine the relationship between the student’s disability and the behavior subject to the disciplinary action (manifestation determination) and to conduct the activities listed in D above. |
| C. | The IEP team, with parent agreement, may determine that a change in placement through the IEP process rather than through these disciplinary procedures is needed. Students may receive a change of placement through the IEP process for any time period determined appropriate by the team, as long as the parent does not object. |
Manifestation Determination.
| A. | In making a manifestation determination, the IEP team and other qualified personnel in a meeting shall: |
| 1. | consider all relevant information in terms of the behavior subject to the disciplinary action, including: |
| a. | evaluation and diagnostic results, including information supplied by the parents; | |||
| b. | observations of the student; | |||
| c. | the student’s IEP and placement. |
| 2. | determine that in relationship to the behavior subject to the disciplinary action: |
| a. | the IEP and placement were appropriate and the special education services, supplementary aids and services and behavior intervention strategies were provided consistent with the student’s IEP and placement; | |||
| b. | the student’s disability did not impair the student’s ability to understand the impact and consequences of the behavior subject to disciplinary action; | |||
| c. | the student’s disability did not impair the student’s ability to control the behavior subject to disciplinary action. |
| B. | If the IEP team and other qualified personnel determine that any of the standards in 2 above were not met, the behavior must be considered to be a manifestation of the student’s disability. | |
| C. | If the IEP team and other qualified personnel identify deficiencies in the student’s IEP or placement or in their implementation, immediate steps must be taken to remedy those deficiencies. | |
| D. | If the IEP team and other qualified personnel determine the behavior was not a manifestation of the student’s disability: |
| 1. | the relevant disciplinary procedures applicable to students without disabilities may be applied to the student in the same manner in which they would be applied to other students; | ||
| 2. | services must be provided to the extent necessary, as determined by the IEP team, to enable the student to appropriately progress in the general curriculum and appropriately advance toward achieving the goals set out in the student’s IEP. |
| E. | If the County initiates disciplinary procedures applicable to all students, the County shall transmit the special education and disciplinary records of the student for consideration by the person or persons making the final determination regarding the removal. |
Removal for Weapons and Drugs.
| A. | If a student with a disability carries a dangerous weapon to school or to a school function under the jurisdiction of the County or knowingly possesses or uses illegal drugs or sells or solicits a controlled substance while at school or a school function under the jurisdiction of the County, an IEP team may change the student’s placement to an interim alternative educational setting (IAES) for the same amount of time that a student without a disability would be subject to discipline, but for not more than forty-five (45) days, as long as such a placement is selected to: |
| 1. | enable the student to continue progress in the general curriculum; | ||
| 2. | enable the student to continue to receive those services and modifications including those in the current IEP that will enable the student to meet the goals in the IEP; | ||
| 3. | include services and modifications to address the behavior for which the student has been removed which are designed to prevent the behavior from recurring. |
| B. | A change of placement to an IAES invokes the procedures set forth in the Change of Placement and Manifestation Determination section of this policy. |
Expedited Due Process Hearings and Student Status During Appeals.
| A. | Expedited due process hearings under the Authority of School Personnel for Removals of not more than Ten (10) School Days at a Time section of this policy must: |
| 1. | meet the requirement of the procedural safeguards, except that the West Virginia Department of Education may provide that the time periods identified for the purposes of due process hearings are not less than two (2) business days; | ||
| 2. | be conducted by a due process hearing officer who satisfies the requirements of applicable State policy. |
| B. | A parent may request an expedited due process hearing if s/he disagrees with the manifestation determination made or with any decisions regarding placement in this section. |
| 1. | If a parent challenges an IAES placement decision, the student remains in the IAES pending the hearing decision or until the expiration of the time period for the placement (up to forty-five (45) days), whichever comes first, unless the parent and Board agree otherwise. | ||
| 2. | If the parent challenges a manifestation determination or change of placement decision (other than an IAES) in a case in which the student has been removed for more than ten (10) school days at a time, the student returns at the end of the ten (10) school day removal to the placement prior to the removal placement, pending the hearing decision, unless the parent and Board agree otherwise. | ||
| 3. | If a student is placed in an IAES pursuant and school personnel propose to change the student’s placement after the expiration of the interim alternative placement, during the pendency of any proceeding to challenge the proposed change in placement, the student must remain in the current placement (the student’s placement prior to the IAES), except as provided below. |
| C. | The County Board may request an expedited due process hearing, if, during the pendency of the expedited due process hearing to challenge a manifestation determination, school personnel maintain it is dangerous for the student to be in or to return to the placement prior to removal placement. |
| 1. | The hearing officer shall determine whether the student may be placed in an IAES or in another setting for up to forty-five (45) days. | ||
| 2. | The County Board may repeat the process of requesting an expedited due process hearing to remove the student from school for up to forty-five (45) days, as necessary. |
| D. | An expedited due process hearing request may be submitted in writing to the County or to the West Virginia Department of Education. Request submitted to the County Board shall be submitted by the Board to the West Virginia Department of Education by the next business day. | |
| E. | Expedited hearings requested by the County or parents shall be conducted and a written decision issued within forty-five (45) days of receipt of the hearing request by the West Virginia Department of Education, without exceptions or extensions. | |
| F. | Each party shall disclose to all other parties, at least two (2) business days prior to an expedited hearing, all evidence that party intends to use at the hearing. | |
| G. | The decisions rendered through the expedited hearing process may be appealed through civil action. |
Authority of the Due Process Hearing Officer.
| A. | A hearing officer may order a change of placement to an IAES for not more than forty-five (45) days, if the hearing officer in an expedited due process hearing: |
| 1. | determines that the County has demonstrated by substantial evidence that maintaining the current placement of the student is substantially likely to result in injury to the student or to others; | ||
| 2. | considers the appropriateness of the student’s current placement; | ||
| 3. | considers whether the County has made reasonable efforts to minimize the risk of harm in the student’s current placement, including the use of supplementary aids and services; | ||
| 4. | determines that the IAES that is proposed by school personnel who have consulted with the student’s special education teacher: |
| a. | is selected so as to enable the student to continue to progress in the general curriculum, although in another setting, and to continue to receive those services and modifications, including those described in the student’s current IEP, that will enable the student to meet the goals set out in the IEP; | |||
| b. | includes services and modifications to address the behavior subject to the disciplinary action that are designed to prevent the behavior from recurring. |
| B. | In reviewing a manifestation determination decision, the hearing officer shall determine whether the County Board has demonstrated that the student’s behavior was not a manifestation of the student’s disability. | |
| C. | In reviewing an IAES decision, the hearing officer shall apply the standards described in A above. |
Referral to and Action by Law Enforcement and Judicial Authorities.
| A. | The County may report a crime committed by a student with a disability to appropriate law enforcement and judicial authorities. | |
| B. | Law enforcement and judicial authorities may exercise their responsibilities with regard to the application of Federal and State law to crimes committed by a student with a disability. | |
| C. | Copies of the special education and disciplinary records shall be transmitted for consideration by the appropriate authorities to whom it reports the crime to the extent permitted by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and State and County policies on the Procedures for the Collection, Maintenance and Disclosure of Student Records. |
Protections for Students Not Yet Determined Eligible.
| A. | A student may assert protections of this part if the County Board had knowledge, as defined below, that the student was a student with a disability before the behavior that precipitated the disciplinary action occurred. |
| 1. | The County shall be deemed to have knowledge if: |
| a. | the parent expressed concern in writing (or orally if parent does not write or has a disability preventing a written statement) to County personnel that the student is in need of special education and related services; | |||
| b. | the behavior or performance of the student demonstrates the need for special education and related services in accordance with applicable policies; | |||
| c. | the parent has requested an evaluation of the student for special education and related services; | |||
| d. | the teacher of the student or other personnel of the County expressed concern about the behavior or performance of the student to the Director of Special Education or to other personnel in accordance with the County’s child find or referral process. |
| 2. | The County Board would not be deemed to have knowledge if, as a result of receiving the information specified above, the County Board either: |
| a. | conducted an evaluation and determined the student was not a student with a disability; | |||
| b. | determined that an evaluation was not necessary; | |||
| c. | provided notice, including Procedural Safeguards, to the parent of its determination. |
| B. | If the County does not have knowledge prior to taking disciplinary measures, the student may be subjected to the same disciplinary measures as applied to non-disabled students who engaged in comparable behaviors. | |
| C. | If a request is made for a multidisciplinary evaluation during the time period in which the student is subjected to disciplinary measures: |
| 1. | the evaluation must be conducted in an expedited manner; | ||
| 2. | until the evaluation is completed, the student remains in the educational placement determined by school authorities, which can include suspension or expulsion without educational services. |
| D. | If the student is determined to be a student with a disability, taking into consideration information from the evaluation conducted by the County and information provided by the parents, the County shall provide special education and related services. |
West Virginia Board of Education Policy 2419
WV Code 18-20-1 et. seq.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act