Massachusetts - Suspension or Expulsion

Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 71, § 37H 3/4 (West)

Population: Youth

Legal Features: N/A

Law Type: Statute

Excerpt of Relevant Text:

(b) Any principal, headmaster, superintendent or person acting as a decision-maker at a student meeting or hearing, when deciding the consequences for the student, shall consider ways to re-engage the student in the learning process; and shall not suspend or expel a student until alternative remedies have been employed and their use and results documented, following and in direct response to a specific incident or incidents, unless specific reasons are documented as to why such alternative remedies are unsuitable or counter-productive, and in cases where the student’s continued presence in school would pose a specific, documentable concern about the infliction of serious bodily injury or other serious harm upon another person while in school. Alternative remedies may include, but shall not be limited to: (i) mediation; (ii) conflict resolution; (iii) restorative justice; and (iv) collaborative problem solving. The principal, headmaster, superintendent or person acting as a decision-maker shall also implement school-or district-wide models to re-engage students in the learning process which shall include but not be limited to: (i) positive behavioral interventions and supports models and (ii) trauma sensitive learning models; provided, however, that school-or district-wide models shall not be considered a direct response to a specific incident.

Read Full Text of Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 71, § 37H 3/4 (West)