Walter H. Warfield is scholar-in-residence at the University of Illinois at Springfield after serving as a school superintendent and executive director of the Illinois Association of School Administrators.
More than 200 years ago, President Thomas Jefferson said: "A nation that expects to be ignorant and free, expects what never was and never will be."
In a recent speech before Congress, President Barack Obama said: "The future belongs to the nation that best educates its citizens."
These words from the leaders of our nation's highest office have clearly identified the importance of education.
Providing the best public education in the world is central to why someone is willing to relinquish time from family, friends, job and recreation for public service on a school board. The catch here is that best education is a product of the work of the board through its decisions … decisions that come in many forms and that can, under special circumstances, expel a student.
Few, if any, choose to serve on a school board in order to experience the anguish of a student expulsion hearing. But if one serves on a board of education for any significant amount of time, participation in the expulsion process is almost a certainty. For this reason alone, it is clear that school board service is not for the faint-hearted.
The best education programs are a product of decisions made amid a myriad of criteria. Many of these decisions are difficult; some are controversial. An always difficult and always controversial one is when to expel a student, whether for the good of that student or the good of other students. Such a decision will always be, and rightly must remain, among the most difficult and critical to come before a school board.
Stay up-to-date
Because the decision to expel rests exclusively with the board, it is vital to establish and maintain up-to-date policy and procedures under which such decisions will be made. These are fundamental to the appropriate execution of the process.
Expulsion without a formulated process constructed from a mixture of philosophy, policy and law can cause a hearing to deteriorate into a board discussion challenging the appropriateness of the policy, procedures and philosophy. Such a discussion can deteriorate even further to include the expulsion participants on an inappropriate footing of over familiarity with the board, board meeting and hearing proceedings. In essence, it can erode the decorum of the board as a public body to the detriment of future proceedings and decisions it will make.
The question then becomes when and how often policy and procedures of student expulsion should be reviewed. The answer is on a regular and systematic schedule. More specifically, a board of education should review this matter:
It is also productive to conduct these reviews when there is no student expulsion hearing in progress before the board. Doing so contributes to a more intellectual, less emotional though never a non-emotional discussion. It is imperative for the philosophy behind a school board decision to expel a student to be sound, its process and procedures clear, and all within the parameters of the law.
Are you ready?
So how do you know if your board is ready for an expulsion hearing?
Review the law. The process of developing expulsion policy best begins with a review of the law, which establishes parameters of what the board can and cannot do. The law regarding student expulsion is extremely complex with parameters that vary depending on a combination of student characteristics including, but not limited to, age, grade level and the student's ability to comprehend.
This review should be done under the guidance of the board attorney, or someone well versed in the area of school law dealing with student expulsions. Important as it is, this review is merely the first step. Knowing what can and cannot be done under the law falls far short of the decision of what should be done.
Discuss philosophy. The next step is to conduct a philosophical discussion among board members to identify the conditions under which the best educational course of action is that of expulsion. This philosophical discussion will contribute to the board's ability to avoid a potentially debilitating discussion of philosophy of education and expulsion that may otherwise ensue during an actual expulsion process.
Such a discussion will happen, but in the interest of it happening in an atmosphere conducive to rational exchange of philosophies, it is prudent to emphasize that such discussions be held regularly and when there is no pending student expulsion hearing. From the prior step, remember that any expulsion criteria agreed to by the board must be within the parameters established by the law.
Develop expulsion policy and procedures. Policy and procedures are the responsibility of the school board to approve, but as an administrative process it comes under the purview of the superintendent to develop. The board here needs only to direct the administration to develop the policy and procedures commensurate with the results of the philosophical discussion and within the parameters of the law.
The law that governs student expulsions is extensive and highly technical. Even though this step in the policy development process comes under the purview of the administration, board members will want to review the readings and other resources available regarding student discipline. Doing so will provide a background for a better understanding of the technicalities that are certain to come before the board at decision making time.
One important decision is whether or not to use an impartial hearing officer in lieu of the board conducting its own expulsion hearings. The board may, at its option, appoint a hearing officer to preside over student expulsion hearings.
When a hearing officer is used, the decision to expel or not still rests with the board. The function of the hearing officer is to preside over the hearing, present the board with a recommendation of action along with the rationale for the recommendation. The board then acts on the recommendation. While it is common for the board to follow the recommendation of the hearing officer, it is not bound to do so.
There is no rule of thumb on when it is best to use a hearing officer. The decision is more one of style and preference that goes back to the board's philosophy. In districts with larger student enrollments where more expulsion hearings may occur, the use of a hearing officer provides for a more efficient use of school board time.
This is not to suggest in any way that a student expulsion hearing is less than worthy of the full attention of the board, but that it allows a hearing officer to devote extensive time and expertise in a highly technical and legalistic area to the benefit of both the board and student.
Developing the procedures for an actual hearing need not be of concern to the board. Again it is the responsibility of the superintendent in cooperation with the school attorney to establish the procedures for the hearing in compliance with the appropriate laws governing the expulsion process.
Review and adopt. The policy and procedures need to be reviewed for compliance with the law. In tandem with this activity, the board should review the policy and procedures for compliance within the agreed philosophical parameters.
Whether or not the board attorney regularly attends board meetings, bringing closure on a student expulsion policy is a task in which access to legal support during the review, summary discussion, and adoption of the policy and procedures is well advised. The attorney's presence should contribute to the accuracy of any last-minute fine tuning needed before adoption.
Communicate. Following policy adoption, the final step is to communicate it to all relevant parties. Administrators, faculty, staff, parents, students and community at large should all be informed via the board's best communication tools. A clear understanding of the policy and procedures by all involved will not only contribute to a smooth execution of the policy when needed, but may also contribute to a reduced need for the policy.
Any discussion of student discipline is certain to be filled with a wide spectrum of opinions and emotions. It is exactly this kind of discussion during the development of such a critical policy that is needed. The discussion will identify the collective view of the board on the fundamental nature of proper student treatment in times of severe violations of school rules, and the ensuing intensified emotional stress that comes with decisions on a child's educational future.
Serving on a board of education is frequently difficult. Dealing with people's children in general is difficult and laced with emotion. Dealing with the issue of a student expulsion from school and all of the pending consequences is even more so. Doing the right thing is often difficult, and doing the right thing relative to a student expulsion may very well be the most difficult decision any individual school board member will ever have to make. This is all the more reason for the law, policy and related procedures regarding student behavior and expulsion to be reviewed on a regular basis.
Yes, this is time consuming. Yes, it is but one of a seemingly endless list of board tasks and responsibilities. Yet the time spent on this matter is time well spent. To paraphrase a somewhat common adage, there will never be enough time for the board to do everything, but a quality board of education will always find time to do the important things.
When it comes to the continuation of a student's education, or not, what could be more important?
Selected resources
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), special education section
Legal Assistance Foundation of Chicago (provides services to the city of Chicago) 312-347-8385 and 312-347-8392
Cook County Legal Assistance Foundation (provides services to Cook County, except the city of Chicago) 708- 339-5550
West Central Illinois Legal Assistance (provides services to the counties of Fulton, Henderson, Knox, McDonough, Stark and Warren) 309-343-2141
Prairie State Legal Services (provides services to the counties of Boone, Bureau, Carroll, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Henry, Iroquois, Jo Davies, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, LaSalle, Lake, Lee, Livingston, McHenry, McLean, Marshall, Mercer, Ogle, Peoria, Putnam, Rock Island, Stephenson, Tazewell, Whiteside, Will, Winnebago and Woodford) 630-690-2130
Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation (directly provides services to all of the remaining counties in Illinois) 618-462-0029
Parents' Guide to Suspensions and Expulsions in Illinois Public Schools, Illinois State Board of Education