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Jefferson County board reviews discipline code, alternative-education placements amid rising drug incidents
Summary
Board members and staff reviewed the district’s code of conduct and alternative-education policy, discussed how additional offenses are handled while a student serves alternative placement time, and cited an increase in 0-tolerance drug incidents driven largely by THC vapes.
At a meeting of the Jefferson County Board of Education, officials reviewed proposed revisions and explanatory materials for the district code of conduct and the district’s alternative-education policy, including how suspensions, expulsions and remanded placements are counted and served.
Board members and staff focused on Policy 6319, the district’s alternative-education policy, which on its face describes an alternative program for students in grades 7 through 12. Staff said the program has at times included younger students and emphasized that alternative placement is treated as a placement with specific requirements rather than a separate disciplinary sentence.
“This says that the board shall operate ... for students in grades 7 through 12,” a staff presenter said, adding that the district has placed fifth and sixth graders in the program in the past. The presenter also told the board that the district’s alternative placement typically requires students to “earn” days toward release (an example cited in the meeting was a 45-day requirement for some placements) and that students who do not follow rules at the placement do not earn those days, which effectively lengthens their time in the program.
Why it matters: Board members sought clarity because the policy language — and how the district applies it — affects how long students remain removed from regular classes and what consequences follow when a student commits a new offense while already suspended or remanded.
Board members asked about a policy sentence that reads, in part, that any new disciplinary offense committed during a student’s original suspension or expulsion “shall be treated as a new and separate offense” and “shall not constitute an extension of the original suspension or expulsion.” A board member asked whether additional offenses during an existing removal ultimately add time; staff said they do not “tack on” the original suspension as a single continuing sentence, but that a student can end up spending more time in alternative placement because they fail to earn release-days or because the new offense triggers a separate sanction.
Staff provided additional operational details: the alternative-placement program is staffed by licensed teachers, offers core coursework (reading, writing, math) though not the full menu of career-technical courses such as welding, and includes a full-time counselor. The district also funds out-of-district placements when the board and staff determine an outplacement is the best educational setting; staff said the district pays tuition for such placements and uses funding sources tied to the student’s educational allocation.
Board members and staff reviewed data cited by district staff: about 7,000 students are enrolled districtwide; roughly 2,700 office-discipline referrals had been recorded that school year as of the meeting; and 0-tolerance cases for drug use rose from about 37 last year to an expected roughly 50 this year. Staff attributed much of the increase in drug-related 0-tolerance cases to THC vapes and other THC products brought to schools.
“We must educate students or provide for their education,” a district official told the board while explaining placement and funding responsibilities for students who require out-of-district programs.
Discussion vs. formal action: The meeting record shows discussion and requests for clarification; no vote or ordinance changing Policy 6319 was taken at this session. A board member said staff would distribute office-discipline referral numbers to the board for further review.
Background and context: Staff said the district’s written materials provided to the board included the code of conduct, the suspension policy, the alternative-education policy, the district’s 0-tolerance policy and sample referral forms for elementary, middle and high schools.
Looking ahead: Staff said they would send the requested discipline-referral statistics to the board for follow-up. The meeting did not adopt new discipline rules or change the policy language during the session.
