230: APPENDIX B - STUDENT DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE
1.0 Committee Powers:
1.1 To conduct hearings and expel or reinstate a student following a recommendation from a school principal for a student who has been suspended for a period greater than five days in accordance with Sections 36 and 37of the Education Act.
2.0 Committee Terms of Reference
2.1 Membership: Three Trustees excluding the Trustee from the student’s designated ward. The local Trustee shall be provided notification of students from his/her area and may attend but only as an observer. Chair elected by the Committee. Quorum of two Trustees.
2.2 Voting Privileges: All members of the Committee may have the right to vote except in the case of a Trustee acting as an observer.
2.3 Administrator Assigned: Deputy Superintendent, Education Services.
2.4 Record of Proceedings of Committee Meetings: Kept by the Executive Assistant, Education Services.
2.5 Meetings: Held at the call of the Chair and/or administrator assigned. Meetings are closed to the public and are held “in camera”.
2.6 Reporting: The Board shall be provided with a yearly report.
3.0 Committee Authority
This Committee is established pursuant to Section 52 (1) (b) of the Education Act.
4.0 Hearing Process
4.1 The Discipline Committee shall not discuss the student expulsion request prior to the meeting at which the student’s case is heard.
4.2 In order to facilitate a comprehensive review of a recommendation for expulsion, the Board requires all relevant and available information to be presented with the principal’s recommendation. Supporting documentation may include but is not limited to:
4.2.1 Current course enrollment.
4.2.2 Recent report card.
4.2.3 Attendance record for the school year to date.
4.2.4 Discipline records for the school year to date as well as any other relevant discipline records.
4.2.5 Most recent School Conduct Policy.
4.2.6 Individual Program Plan (IPP) and/or cumulative file review report indicating background information and any special needs.
4.2.7 Intervention checklist with a summary of interventions implemented to date.
4.3 During the Discipline Committee Meeting, the Discipline Committee should not hold any discussions with school administration on the merits of the administration’s recommendation.
4.4 Through the Chair, Trustee committee members may request from the principal or designate and the student, parent and/or advocate, clarification of the facts without expressing opinion or decision.
4.5 Any information verbally provided to the Discipline Committee by administration shall be done in the presence of the student prior to the student having an opportunity to respond. When the Discipline Committee requires additional information prior to making a decision, the Discipline Committee Meeting should be adjourned and a new date set within the parameters of the Education Act for a continuation of the meeting.
4.6 Any additional information should be provided to the Discipline Committee in the presence of the student and the principal.
4.7 The principal and the student may each be allowed the opportunity to make a closing statement at the conclusion of the meeting.
4.8 Following the conclusion of questioning by the Committee, the student, principal, recording secretary, and all others present, shall depart and the Discipline Committee will debate the recommendation and make their decision in a private session.
4.9 In the event that the Discipline Committee during its private deliberations requires additional information, both the principal and the student should be recalled and any further questions should be asked in the presence of both the principal and the student.
4.10 The Discipline Committee shall recall the recording secretary to record a draft of their decision.
4.11 Subsequent to the Discipline Committee’s impartial private deliberations, all parties will be recalled and the final decision shall be announced in the presence of both the principal and the student. The decision should include a reference to the recommendation for expulsion and the reasons for the decision. The Committee has the discretion to alter the terms of the expulsion.
4.12 The Committee shall render its decision for reinstatement or expulsion within the time limitations set out in the Education Act and shall promptly inform, in writing, the parents of the student, the student who is 16 years of age or older, and the principal accordingly and shall advise the parents of their right of appeal to the Minister of Alberta Education.
References:
Education Act: Sections 36, (1), 37 (1), 51, 52 (1) (b)
Board Procedures Regulation 82/2019
Board Policies II. School Board Governance and Operations