Minnesota School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Authority to Develop and Establish Codes of Conduct

Minnesota School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Authority to Develop and Establish Codes of Conduct

Category: Codes of Conduct
Subcategory: Authority to Develop and Establish Codes of Conduct
State: Minnesota

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Minnesota

New in 2024

LAWS

121A.031. School student bullying policy.

Subd. 3. Local district and school policy.

(a) Districts and schools, in consultation with students, parents, and community organizations, to the extent practicable, shall adopt, implement, and, on a cycle consistent with other district policies, review, and revise where appropriate, a written policy to prevent and prohibit student bullying consistent with this section. The policy must conform with sections 121A.41 to 121A.56. A district or school must adopt and implement a local policy under subdivisions 3 to 5 or comply with the provisions of the state model policy in subdivision 6.

121A.0312. Malicious and sadistic conduct.

(a) For purposes of this section, "malicious and sadistic conduct" means creating a hostile learning environment by acting with the intent to cause harm by intentionally injuring another without just cause or reason or engaging in extreme or excessive cruelty or delighting in cruelty.

(b) A school board of a district or charter school must adopt a written policy to address malicious and sadistic conduct and sexual exploitation by a district or school staff member, independent contractor, or student enrolled in a public school against a staff member, independent contractor, or student that occurs as described in section 121A.031, subdivision 1, paragraph (a). The policy must prohibit:

(1) malicious and sadistic conduct involving race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, disability, religion, sexual harassment, and sexual orientation and gender identity, as defined in chapter 363A; and

(2) sexual exploitation.

(c) The policy must apply to students, independent contractors, teachers, administrators, and other school personnel; must include at a minimum the components under section 121A.031, subdivision 4, paragraph (a); and must include disciplinary actions for each violation of the policy. Disciplinary actions must conform with collective bargaining agreements and sections 121A.41 to 121A.56.

(d) The policy must be conspicuously posted throughout each school building, distributed to each district or school employee and independent contractor at the time of hiring or contracting, and included in each school's student handbook on school policies. Each school must develop a process for discussing with students, parents of students, independent contractors, and school employees the policy adopted under this section.

121A.55. Policies to be established.

(a) The commissioner of education must promulgate guidelines to assist each school board. Each school board must establish uniform criteria for dismissal and adopt written policies and rules to effectuate the purposes of sections 121A.40 to 121A.56. The policies must include nonexclusionary disciplinary policies and practices consistent with section 121A.41, subdivision 12, and must emphasize preventing dismissals through early detection of problems. The policies must be designed to address students' inappropriate behavior from recurring.

(b) The policies must recognize the continuing responsibility of the school for the education of the pupil during the dismissal period.

(c) The school is responsible for ensuring that alternative educational services, if the pupil wishes to take advantage of them, must be adequate to allow the pupil to make progress toward meeting the graduation standards adopted under section 120B.02 and help prepare the pupil for readmission in accordance with section 121A.46, subdivision 5.

(d) For expulsion and exclusion dismissals and pupil withdrawal agreements as defined in section 121A.41, subdivision 13:

(1) for a pupil who remains enrolled in the district or is awaiting enrollment in a new district, a school district's continuing responsibility includes reviewing the pupil's schoolwork and grades on a quarterly basis to ensure the pupil is on track for readmission with the pupil's peers. A school district must communicate on a regular basis with the pupil's parent or guardian to ensure that the pupil is completing the work assigned through the alternative educational services as defined in section 121A.41, subdivision 11. These services are required until the pupil enrolls in another school or returns to the same school;

(2) a pupil receiving school-based or school-linked mental health services in the district under section 245.4889 continues to be eligible for those services until the pupil is enrolled in a new district; and

(3) a school district must provide to the pupil's parent or guardian information on accessing mental health services, including any free or sliding fee providers in the community. The information must also be posted on the district or charter school website.

(e) An area learning center under section 123A.05 may not prohibit an expelled or excluded pupil from enrolling solely because a district expelled or excluded the pupil. The board of the area learning center may use the provisions of the Pupil Fair Dismissal Act to exclude a pupil or to require an admission plan.

(f) Each school district shall develop a policy and report it to the commissioner on the appropriate use of peace officers and crisis teams to remove students who have an individualized education program from school grounds.

121A.61. Discipline and removal of students from class.

Subdivision 1. Required policy. - Required policy. Each school board must adopt a written districtwide school discipline policy which includes written rules of conduct for students, minimum consequences for violations of the rules, and grounds and procedures for removal of a student from class. The policy must contain the discipline complaint procedure that any member of the school community may use to file a complaint regarding the application of discipline policies and seek corrective action. The policy must be developed in consultation with administrators, teachers, employees, pupils, parents, community members, law enforcement agencies, county attorney offices, social service agencies, and such other individuals or organizations as the board determines appropriate. A school site council may adopt additional provisions to the policy subject to the approval of the school board.

Subd. 5. School supports.

(a) A school board is strongly encouraged to adopt a policy that promotes the understanding in school staff that when a student is unable to meet adult expectations it is often because the student lacks the skills to respond to a situation appropriately. A school district must support school staff in using tiered interventions that teach students skills and prioritize relationships between students and teachers.

(b) A school board is strongly encouraged to adopt a policy that discourages teachers and staff from reacting to unwanted student behavior with approaches that take away the student's opportunity to build skills for responding more appropriately.

121A.69. Hazing policy.

Subd. 3. School board policy.–Each school board shall adopt a written policy governing student or staff hazing. The policy must apply to student behavior that occurs on or off school property and during and after school hours. The policy must include reporting procedures and disciplinary consequences for violating the policy. Disciplinary consequences must be sufficiently severe to deter violations and appropriately discipline prohibited behavior. Disciplinary consequences must conform with sections 121A.41 to 121A.56. Each school must include the policy in the student handbook on school policies.

REGULATIONS

No relevant regulations found.