541 Policy: Student Behavior

Continue to Guideline 541.1: Student Behavior

I. PURPOSE

A. Richfield Public Schools recognizes that appropriate school behavior is critical to academic success and a safe and vibrant learning community. Teaching and learning appropriate school behavior is the task of all staff, students, and parents/guardians. Working together to establish and maintain high standards of behavior and a school culture that respects and accepts differences is a shared responsibility. 

B. Effective discipline:

1. Is meant to be educational. Behavior expectations should be proactively taught to students and continuously reinforced.

2. Considers the age and development of the student in framing the instruction in appropriate behavior and the consequences for misbehavior.

3. Includes building relationships, repair of harm and restoring relationships, teaching skills and accountability, and restorative practices to re-engage students in their learning community. 

4. Maximizes the amount of student and staff time and attention spent on teaching and learning.

5. Seeks to minimize the amount of student instruction time lost as a result of removal from classes due to misbehavior.  

C. Richfield Public Schools is responsible to ensure a safe and orderly learning and working environment for all students and staff.  The District asks parents/guardians and families to partner in teaching and supporting appropriate school behavior to maximize the academic success of their students.

II. GENERAL STATEMENT OF POLICY  

A. Responses to student behavior will be reflective of Richfield Public Schools' stated beliefs, including the following:

1. Quality education requires cooperation and partnership among students, home, school, and community.

2. A safe, supportive, and engaging environment promotes learning.

3. Expectations and effort influence performance.

4. Learning about and respecting individual differences fosters unity and strengthens community.

5. Each person can learn and deserves to learn, and learning is everyone’s responsibility.

6. Core values such as caring, honesty, respect and responsibility must be developed.

7. There is strength in cooperation, collaboration and healthy competition. 

8. Adults are capable of controlling their own behavior and can model expectations for students through self-regulation.

III. RESPONSIBILITIES

A. The superintendent, in collaboration with the school board and district administration, is responsible for:

1. providing directives to enforce this policy;

2. establishing high standards of behavior for students; 

3. analyzing behavior data overall as well as disaggregated by student group (race, gender, disability, etc.) to identify disproportionalities and respond appropriately;

4. identifying adequate means for the documentation of behavior responses and the analysis of behavior data;

5. engaging appropriate community resources and identifying appropriate training for staff, student, parents and community partners; 

6. leading the District to maintain a culture that respects and accepts differences.

B. The principal or administrative designee is responsible for:

1. leading the collaborative development of the school’s behavior and restorative practices plan;

2. ensuring that annual notices are given to students, parents/guardians and staff;

3. communicating the school behavior expectations to students and parent/guardians at the beginning of the school year;

4. communicating with teachers after responding to a student being removed from the classroom;

5. communicating with parent/guardians when responding to student behavior concerns when the student is removed from class;

6. ensuring that teachers are appropriately implementing the school behavior plan and following individualized behavior plans for specific students;

7. developing and sustaining partnerships with identified community resources;

8. leading the review of school behavior data to identify training needs with a view toward improving student outcomes;

9. reporting behavior data at least annually to their school community;

10. reviewing behavior data with the superintendent or other District leadership no less than annually;

11. leading the school to maintain a culture that respects and accepts differences.

C. Teachers are responsible for:

1. leading the development of the classroom behavior and restorative practices standards and procedures aligned to the District and building expectations;

2. ensuring that all students are taught the expected school behavior in their classroom and throughout the school;

3. participating in identifying students using data-driven methods that would benefit from additional support from school and community resources;

4. participating in implementation of the school behavior plan and restorative practices;

5. participating in data review, necessary training, and analysis of behavior data to improve student outcomes;

6. communicating with students when behavior interferes with learning;

7. communicating with parent/guardians when there is a pattern of student behavior;

8. working together with other staff and students to maintain a school culture that respects and accepts differences.

D. Non-classroom school staff members are responsible for:

1. implementing with consistency the District behavior standards and school behavior standards;

2. supporting and celebrating positive student behaviors and addressing negative behaviors when observed;

3. participating in training and analysis of behavior data to improve student outcomes as directed by the principal or site administrator;

4. working together with other staff and students to maintain a school culture that respects and accepts differences.

E. Parents/guardians are responsible for:

1. partnering with their student’s schools to know and implement with consistency  the District behavior standards and school and classroom rules to improve their student’s outcomes; 

2. helping their student learn the behavior standards of their schools and classrooms;

3. working collaboratively with school staff and their student to respond to and resolve behavior issues. 

F. Students are responsible for:

1. learning the behavior expectations of the District, their school and their classrooms;

2. taking personal responsibility and accountability for their behavior as they are able;

3. working to improve the relationships they have with their peers, their teachers and with other school staff; 

4. working together with their peers, their teachers and with other school staff to maintain a school culture that respects and accepts differences.

IV. DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNICATION OF BEHAVIOR STANDARDS

The District is committed to teaching all students and to ensuring that students’ learning is not disrupted by the behavior of others. The District is committed to taking actions to provide a safe learning environment for all students, and a safe working environment for all staff.  

A. The superintendent shall report behavior data to the schoolboard no less than annually.

B. Building principals shall review behavior data with the superintendent no less than annually.

C. Every school shall establish and teach behavior expectations and responses to student inappropriate behavior that are consistent with this policy and accompanying administrative guidelines, and directives from the superintendent.  All school staff shall receive training on the school’s plan.

D. Every classroom shall establish behavior standards and norms within the District’s policy, the superintendent’s directives and the school’s behavior plan with participation from the students in the classroom. All students shall be taught the behavior standards established.

E. Every school employee shall demonstrate high standards of behavior that model appropriate school behavior, including communicating with staff and students in a respectful manner, and shall monitor and respond to student behavior.

F. Every school shall examine discipline data to ensure that responses to student behavior do not show evidence of bias or discriminatory behavior. Schools shall also use behavior data to identify and provide additional training to staff and students; and to provide effective interventions for students to improve student outcomes. 

G. Student age, developmental stage and individual needs based on culture, language or disability, or other relevant factors, shall be considered in determining the appropriate response to behavior. 

H. Behavior standards for students with an Individualized Education Program (“IEP”), Individual Accommodation Plan (“IAP/504 Plan”) shall be supported by the terms of the accommodations of their written program or plan to the extent they differ from the district policy, regulations and school plan.

I. The District will make this policy and accompanying administrative guidelines available on the District’s website and they also shall be available upon request in each principal's office.  The school board encourages use of a variety of media to increase awareness.

J. Students and parents/guardians shall receive notice of classroom rules established by their classrooms.

K. The District will report to the Minnesota Department of Education all measures of disciplinary data that are required by statute.

V. DISCIPLINE COMPLAINT PROCEDURE

Students, parents/guardians and District staff members may file a complaint and seek corrective action with this policy is not being implemented appropriately or is being discriminately applied.

A. The District must provide parents/guardians with instructions for filing a complaint.

B. All parties involved must be allowed to submit additional information related to the complaint.

C. An investigation into the complaint must begin within three (3) days of receiving the complaint. The principal or designee of the school where the discipline occurred will manage the investigation and keep a record of the relevant information.

D. The principal or designee will issue a written determination to the complainant that addresses each allegation and contains findings and conclusions.

E. If the investigation finds that this policy was not implemented appropriately, a corrective action plan to correct a student’s record and provide relevant staff with training, coaching, or other accountability practices to ensure appropriate compliance in the future will be put into place.

F. Reprisals or retaliation against any person who asserts, alleges, or reports a complaint is prohibited. The District will apply appropriate consequences for any person who engages in reprisal or retaliation.

 

 

Legal References:

Minn. Stat. Ch. 13 (Minnesota Government Data Practices Act)

Minn. Stat. § 120B.02 (Educational Expectations and Graduation Requirements for Minnesota Students)

Minn. Stat. § 120B.232 (Character Development Education)

Minn. Stat. § 121A.26 (School Preassessment Teams)

Minn. Stat. § 121A.29 (Reporting; Chemical Abuse)

Minn. Stat. §121A.40 et seq. (Pupil Fair Dismissal Act)

Minn. Stat. § 121A.575 (Alternatives to Pupil Suspension)

Minn. Stat. §121A.58 et seq. (Discipline, All Students)

Minn. Stat. §§ 121A.60 (Definitions)

Minn. Stat. § 121A.61 (Discipline and Removal of Students from Class)

Minn. Stat. § 122A.42 (General Control of Schools)

Minn. Stat. § 123A.05 (State-Approved Alternative Program Organization)

Minn. Stat. § 124D.03 (Enrollment Options Program)

Minn. Stat. § 124D.08 (School Boards’ Approval to Enroll in Nonresident District; Exceptions)

Minn. Stat. Ch. 125A (Special Education and Special Programs)

Minn. Stat. § 152.22, Subd. 6 (Definitions)

Minn. Stat. § 152.23 (Limitations)

Minn. Stat. Ch. 260A (Truancy)

Minn. Stat. Ch. 260C (Juvenile Safety and Placement)

20 U.S.C. §§ 1400-1487 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)

29 U.S.C. § 794 (Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973)

34 C.F.R. § 300.530(e)(1) (Manifestation Determination)

 

RATIFIED BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION: July 15, 1963

REVISED BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION: September 18, 1978; November 15, 1982; June 18, 1984; June 6, 1994; November 20, 1995; February 7, 2000; February 20, 2001; April 21, 2003; March 15, 2004; June 17, 2008; July 15, 2019; May 6, 2024

REVIEWED AND REAFFIRMED BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION: August 17, 2020; August 16, 2021; September 6, 2022