Suspension and Expulsion

infractions not applicable to boys. Some schools specify inflexibly how a girl must dress, excluding any departure from a school uniform, exposure of skin below the neck and arms, or use of items such as leggings or yoga pants. In many cases, such restrictions are defended on the grounds that departures would distract boys from their academic responsibilities. However, some girls perceive these codes to be sexist restrictions that attempt to use so-called “slut shaming” to embarrass and punish them. In some cases, the restrictions appear to be imposed more to carry out school officials’ definition of “good taste” than to further a legally defensible purpose involving orderly behavior or safety in the school.36

9-3d suspension and expulsion

The issue of expulsion is illustrated in the case of nine students who received ten-day suspensions from their Columbus, Ohio, secondary schools for various alleged acts of misconduct. The suspensions were imposed without hearings but in accordance with state law; the school board had no written procedure covering suspensions. The students filed suit, claiming deprivation of their constitutional rights. In defense, school officials argued that without a constitutional right to education at public expense, the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment did not apply.

When this case, Goss v. Lopez, reached the Supreme Court in 1975, a majority of the Court disagreed with the school officials, reasoning that students had a legal right to public education. In other words, students had a property interest in their education that could not be taken away “without adherence to the minimum procedures” required by the due-process clause. Further, the justices said that students facing suspension “must be given some kind of notice and afforded some kind of hearing,” including “an opportunity to explain [their] version of the facts.” Also, “as a general rule, notice and hearing should precede removal of the student from school.” Applying these principles to suspensions of up to ten days, the Court added that longer suspensions or expulsions might require more elaborate due-process procedures.37

In response to such court decisions, most school districts have developed policies governing suspensions and expulsions. These policies usually distinguish between short- and long-term suspensions. Short-term suspension rights typically include oral or written notice describing the misconduct, the evidence on which the accusation is based, a statement of the planned punishment, and an opportunity for the student to explain his or her version or refute the stated facts before an impartial person. Expulsions require full procedural due process similar to that necessary for teacher terminations.38

controversy in suspending students with disabilities Recent court decisions

have limited school officials’ authority to suspend or expel disabled students who are disruptive or violent. In the case of Honig v. Doe, the Supreme Court ruled that

36“Students Protest ‘Slut-Shaming’ High School Dress Codes with Mass Walkouts,” The Guardian (September 24, 2014), available at www.theguardian.com; and Giana Ciapponi, “School Dress Codes: Slut-Shaming or Empowering?” June 2, 2014, posting by Ravishly, available at www.ravishly.com. 37Goss v. Lopez, 419 US 565 (1975). See also Perry A. Zirkel, “Supporting Suspenders,” Phi Delta Kappan (November 1994), pp. 256–257; Richard S. Vacca, “Student Procedural Due Process,” CEPI Education Law Newsletter (February 2006), available at www.cepi.vcu.edu/publications /newsletters; and Mark Walsh, “School Discipline Upheld Over ‘Stab’ Tweets, Knife Possession,” Education Week (February 12, 2014). 38Perry A. Zirkel and Ivan B. Gluckman, “Due Process for Student Suspensions,” NASSP Bulletin (March 1990), pp. 95–98; Richard S. Vacca, “Student Discipline 2010,” CEPI Education Law Newsletter (March 2010), available at ww.cepi.vcu.edu/publications/newsletters; and Krista Gesaman, “Student Media Guide to Due Process Claims,” March 23, 2015, posting by the Student Press Law Center, available at www.splc.org.