Suspended in Florida: the 10-day line, the code of conduct, and the Stand Up for All Students Act

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A ninth grader in Hialeah gets called to the office on a Tuesday and is told she is suspended for three days. Her mother, who reads English slowly, wants to know if that is even allowed and who decides. In Florida, the answer starts with a state definition: an out-of-school suspension is a temporary removal for no more than 10 school days, with the student sent home to a parent and given homework to complete. Anything longer is a different thing with a different process.

Who has to be in school, and who can leave

Florida's compulsory attendance law (the rule that says a child must go to school) covers children from age 6 to age 16. A student who turns 16 during the school year can stop attending only by filing a formal declaration of intent with the district school board, signed by both the student and a parent. The school then has to do an exit interview and explain other paths, like adult education.

The same statute says pregnant students, married students, and students who are parents cannot be kept out of school.

Suspension versus expulsion in Florida

Every Florida district school board must adopt a code of student conduct and hand it out at the start of each year. The state requires that code to list the specific grounds for in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, and expulsion, and to explain student rights on free speech, student publications, assembly, and privacy. It must be written in language students and parents can understand.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided in Goss v. Lopez (1975) that a public school student facing a suspension of up to 10 days must at least be told the charge and given a chance to tell their side before being sent home. Florida's code puts the same 10-school-day cap on in-school and out-of-school suspension.

Expulsion is heavier. In Florida it means losing the right to attend public school for up to the rest of the school year plus one more year, and only the district school board can decide it. Expulsion hearings follow the state's Administrative Procedure Act, the law that governs formal state hearings, and the family must be told they can choose to have the hearing held in public. Ask for the hearing. You are allowed to.

What a Florida school must do after a bullying report

Florida's anti-bullying law is the Jeffrey Johnston Stand Up for All Students Act. It bans bullying and harassment of any student or employee at school, at school events, on the bus, and on school computers. It also reaches cyberbullying from a home phone or laptop when the bullying substantially interferes with the victim's ability to take part in school.

Bullying, under the law, means systematically and chronically inflicting physical hurt or psychological distress; retaliation against someone who reports it counts too.

Each district must have a policy that follows the Florida Department of Education's model policy and includes a reporting procedure, a prompt investigation, and immediate notification of the parents of both the victim and the student accused. A report can be anonymous, though formal discipline cannot rest on an anonymous report alone.

Where to look and what to do

Importante

Start with the district code of student conduct, which should be in the student handbook. For a suspension, ask in writing what rule was broken and ask for the chance to respond that Goss v. Lopez requires. For an expulsion recommendation, ask the district for the hearing date and the procedure, and ask whether the hearing will be public.

Florida's statutes are free to read on the Legislature's Online Sunshine site: chapter 1003 covers attendance and definitions, and chapter 1006 covers discipline and the bullying law. If a school does not follow its own bullying policy, put the complaint in writing to the principal, then to the district superintendent's office, and compare what happened against the Florida Department of Education's model policy.

We could not confirm a statewide student-press law or a state ban on suspending young students in Florida, so do not assume either exists here; check the district code instead.

Lembre-se disto

In Florida, school is compulsory from age 6 to 16, and a 16-year-old can leave only with a signed declaration and an exit interview.
A suspension, in school or out, cannot last more than 10 school days, and Goss v. Lopez means you get to hear the charge and respond first.
Only the district school board can expel, for up to the rest of the year plus one more, and the family can ask for a public hearing.
Under the Stand Up for All Students Act, a bullying report must trigger a prompt investigation and immediate notice to both sets of parents.

Fontes

Este artigo traz informações educativas gerais, não aconselhamento jurídico individual. A KidsKnowRights não é um escritório de advocacia, e ler este artigo não cria uma relação advogado-cliente. As leis variam de acordo com o estado, a idade e as circunstâncias, e mudam com o tempo. Para receber orientação sobre uma situação real, fale com um advogado licenciado ou com uma organização de assistência jurídica gratuita.