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Beaufort staff outline new due-process rights for suspension and expulsion cases
Summary
Staff described changes to SS 309 to incorporate recent legislative requirements: written notices must inform families of the right to legal counsel, the right to question witnesses, access to investigative files (including video review on site), and an appeal timeline requiring a 10-day filing window and a 10-day superintendent decision period.
At the July 17 academic committee meeting, staff explained updates to the district’s disciplinary administrative regulation (SS 309) to reflect recent legislative changes about due process.
Staff said the updated language requires districts to provide written notification to families that includes the right to legal counsel, the right to question witnesses, and contact information for legal-assistance providers when families cannot afford counsel. Staff also described changes to evidence access: families will be able to view investigative files and videos on site (with FERPA constraints preserved), allowing parents and counsel to prepare for hearings. "In our past practice, we have always provided a hearing packet to the family that has a list of all the documents that were involved... now it's officially in the law," staff said.
The AR also adjusts appeal timelines: staff described a 10-day window for a parent to appeal an adverse hearing decision and a subsequent 10-day period for the superintendent (or designee) to issue a decision on the appeal, which the presenters described together as a 20-calendar-day timeline from initial decision through superintendent review. Committee members pressed for clarity about timelines, who asks questions at hearings (parents or counsel), and how video evidence that includes other students will be handled; staff said they will provide more detailed guidance and copies of updated letters to families.
No formal adoption vote for these changes was recorded during the committee session; staff said updated notification letters and hearing packets will be distributed to families and administrators.
