Anyone else had issues with school suspensions?

My 12-year-old grandson was involved in a fight at school, and now he’s been given a 6-day out-of-school suspension, but they also want to have an expulsion hearing. We’re worried because the fight wasn’t that serious, and now they’re saying he might have to attend an alternative school for 45 days. Has anyone dealt with something like this? What are our options?

Oh no, that sounds stressful! Have you tried appealing the decision? Sometimes they back down if you push back a little.

Brook said:
Oh no, that sounds stressful! Have you tried appealing the decision? Sometimes they back down if you push back a little.

We’re thinking about it, but we’re also worried that if we appeal, they might increase the punishment instead of reducing it.

@Sia
Yeah, that can happen… it’s a bit of a gamble. You might want to get a lawyer involved if you’re not sure.

We went through something similar last year. The key is to make sure they follow the school’s code of conduct exactly. Did they show you any video evidence or anything?

Teo said:
We went through something similar last year. The key is to make sure they follow the school’s code of conduct exactly. Did they show you any video evidence or anything?

They showed us a video that does show him there, but he didn’t really fight until someone else started with him later. It’s confusing because they’re still calling it a level 3 offense.

@Sia
That sounds like they’re being too harsh. Maybe push to get the offense downgraded. If the video backs him up, that should help!

Schools can be so strict with this stuff. Did your grandson get a chance to explain his side of the story?

Meech said:
Schools can be so strict with this stuff. Did your grandson get a chance to explain his side of the story?

Yeah, he did explain, and they still gave him 45 days at the alternative school. It feels like they didn’t really listen.

@Sia
That sucks. I’d definitely try to appeal if it feels unfair.

Do you know if there’s an option to get the punishment reduced if he goes to the alternative school for a little bit first?

Ash said:
Do you know if there’s an option to get the punishment reduced if he goes to the alternative school for a little bit first?

We haven’t been told anything about that yet. We’re hoping there’s a way to shorten it, but we’re not sure what our next steps are.

My nephew had a similar situation. We appealed, and they actually ended up reducing his time at the alternative school. It’s definitely worth trying.

Zach said:
My nephew had a similar situation. We appealed, and they actually ended up reducing his time at the alternative school. It’s definitely worth trying.

Thanks for sharing, that’s reassuring! We’ll look into appealing and see if we can get the time reduced.