Chappaqua board reframes discipline policy language, opens hearings on safety plan ahead of school year

The Chappaqua Central School District Board of Education held public hearings Aug. 7 on proposed revisions to the student code of conduct and the district safety plan, with Superintendent Dr. Pease presenting the changes and board members discussing discipline, restorative options for seniors and how the district will notify communities about serious incidents.

Dr. Pease said the district proposes removing the existing paragraph labeled “hate speech” and “refram[ing] it as unprotected speech,” anchored to New York State law so families have a clearer legal definition to consult. “Instead of using the category as hate speech to classify some of the behaviors that we're concerned about, we're going to reframe it as unprotected speech,” Dr. Pease said during the hearing.

The proposed code also shifts some minimum disciplinary interventions. Under the revisions described by Dr. Pease, middle school principals may assign after‑school detention or short exclusive suspensions for a first offense in the unprotected‑speech category; high school principals may assign Saturday detention or up to two days of in‑school suspension for certain first offenses. Dr. Pease emphasized that more serious incidents would still be subject to stronger interventions and that principals have discretion based on the nature of the conduct.

A board member told the meeting the restorative language change — adding a path for seniors to access restorative processes even if they had prior disciplinary actions — was important to avoid purely punitive outcomes. “The district always trying to think about ways we can improve… so our students can learn from their mistakes,” the board member said, urging a focus on learning and repair rather than only punishment.

The draft code also renames an internal advisory group from the District Equity Team (DET) to the District Community Culture and Belonging Team to align internal naming with the district’s website and other work, and it adds a section that memorializes expected conduct for visitors on school property.

On the safety plan, Dr. Pease said changes were minimal and mainly technical: the plan remains closely aligned with New York State requirements, lays out required drills, identifies the emergency response team and adds guidance to avoid causing alarm by clearly indicating drills to students and staff. “All of the information on the safety plan is really in line with New York State departments,” Dr. Pease said.

Board members and administrators indicated several next steps: the policy committee will take public feedback, finalize the code language, and bring the code of conduct to the board for adoption at the next meeting; the safety plan will be posted on the district website as required. Dr. Pease invited community members to submit comments by email and noted the board must adopt the code before the school year begins.

The board also previewed related policy changes under review — including updates to the district’s maintenance‑of‑public‑order policy, student clubs policy and outside‑speakers regulation — and confirmed those will remain subject to the board’s normal policy review and adoption process.

Votes and formal actions taken at the Aug. 7 meeting related to this topic were procedural (first readings and the scheduling of hearings) rather than final adoptions; the board requested public feedback and signaled a final adoption vote would take place at a future meeting.

Less critical details: the public comment period for the hearing was opened specifically for code of conduct and safety plan feedback; board members noted the district would provide parents and staff clarifications about the new language and any changes in interventions ahead of the opening of school.