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Board considers changes to suspension and expulsion procedures to shorten hearing timelines
Summary
Cedar Springs staff presented proposed edits to policy 3610 outlining short-term, long-term suspension and expulsion timelines; discussion focused on who should make suspension decisions and how to protect due process while speeding hearings.
The board considered proposed revisions to policy 3610 on suspension and expulsion procedures that would adjust how long-term suspensions are handled and shorten the timeline for convening hearings.
Staff summarized existing statutory definitions: a short-term suspension is 10 days or less, a long-term suspension is more than 10 days but less than 60 days, and an expulsion is any removal from in-person instruction of 60 days or more. Draft language would centralize some long-term suspension decisions at the district or central office level, with an option for parents to appeal to the board. The change is intended to reduce the administrative time needed to assemble a board hearing for suspensions that fall between school-year break points.
Board members raised concerns about whether faster timelines could limit a student’s right to appeal and how the district would assemble hearing packets. Staff said expedited procedures would not remove appeal rights; administrative processes and timelines would be developed and the board would continue to hold due-process hearings for expulsions and appeals.
Board members also questioned the numeric windows in the draft (for example, whether a district should use the state’s 60-day threshold) and asked staff to research neighboring districts’ practices before the board considers final action.
No final vote was taken; staff will return with revised language and additional research.
