Rochester City School Board Policy Manual
1400-E1
Student Removals & Due Process On occasion, a student may engage in behavior that threatens the safety of others in the school community or seriously disrupts the school environment and needs to be removed through a temporary classroom removal, suspension or expulsion. However, written referrals shall not be used to document supports offered to students within the classroom (i.e., timeouts and other informal measures). See Appendix F for definition of removal.
There are four ways that schools can remove students for disciplinary reasons:
1. Temporary Classroom Removal by Teacher (up to 1/2 day) 2. Short Term Suspension by Principal (1-5 days), either in or out of school 3. Long Term Suspension by Superintendent (6 days – 365 days) 4. Expulsion by Superintendent
Disciplinary practices include an in-school or out-of-school suspension, or any other removal of a student from class during which the student: 1. is not afforded the opportunity to continue to appropriately participate in the general curriculum; 2. does not receive the services specified on the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP); or 3. does not continue to participate with nondisabled children to the extent they would have in their current placement. This includes asking a parent to pick a student up as a way of deescalating, sending a student to a “Help Zone” for an extended length of time), which will count as a suspension and must follow due process. In these cases, students are entitled to due process, which means that the school staff must take steps to investigate the incident and talk to the student before making the decision to remove the student from school. Due process generally includes the right to receive notice of why a person is being removed from school and an opportunity for that person to tell their side of the story before a final decision is made. Parents must receive notice of the behavior and the discipline response. The longer the removal, the more steps the school must take before removing a student. Students with disabilities are entitled to additional due process.
For a full list of the steps that are required, see Appendices C (Due Process) and D (Students with Disabilities).
Continued Engagement Throughout Suspension Suspension protocols must include at minimum before, during and after suspension consistent communication with student and family, supports to assure that the student keeps up with academics, engage student and family in developing the plan for their success, and demonstration of caring connection to their community.
Re-entry to School After Suspension The Superintendent will create a Superintendent’s regulation for re-engagement after a student is suspended.
Prohibited Conduct on School Property No person, either alone or with others, shall:
1. Intentionally or recklessly injure any person or threaten or attempt to do so.
2. Intentionally or recklessly damage or destroy, or attempt to damage or destroy District property or the personal property of a District staff or any person lawfully on school property, including graffiti or arson.
3. Disrupt the orderly conduct of classes, school programs, sporting events, assemblies, theatrical or musical presentations, meetings, conferences, hearings, Board of Education meetings or other school activities.
4. Distribute or wear materials on school property or at school functions that are obscene, or advocate illegal action, appear libelous, obstruct the rights of others, or are disruptive to the school program.
June 18, 2026
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