The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 16 : Education

Chapter 025 : Attendance and Discipline

Subchapter 004 : Effective Discipline Measures

• § 1161a. Discipline

  (a) Each public and each approved independent school shall adopt and implement a comprehensive plan for responding to student misbehavior. To the extent appropriate, the plan shall promote the positive development of youths. The plan shall include:

  (1) The school’s approach to classroom management and response to disruptive behavior, including the use of alternative educational settings.

  (2) The manner in which the school will provide information and training to students in methods of conflict resolution, peer mediation, and anger management.

  (3) Procedures for informing parents of the school’s discipline policies, for notifying parents of student misconduct, and for working with parents to improve student behavior.

  (4) The school’s response to significant disruptions, such as threats or use of bombs or weapons.

  (5) A description of how the school will ensure that all staff and contractors who routinely have unsupervised contact with students periodically receive training on the maintenance of a safe, orderly, civil, and positive learning environment. The training shall be appropriate to the role of the staff member being trained and shall teach classroom and behavior management, enforcement of the school’s discipline policies, and positive youth development models.

  (6) A description of behaviors on and off school grounds that constitute misconduct, including harassment, bullying, and hazing, particularly those behaviors that may be grounds for expulsion. The plan shall include a description of misconduct as listed in subdivisions 11(a)(26)(A)-(C) and (32) of this title that, although serious, does not rise to the level of harassment or bullying as those terms are defined in these subdivisions.

  (7) Standard due process procedures for suspension and expulsion of a student.

  (b) For the purpose of this chapter, “corporal punishment” means the intentional infliction of physical pain upon the body of a pupil as a disciplinary measure.

  (c) No person employed by or agent of a public or approved independent school shall inflict or cause to be inflicted corporal punishment upon a student attending the school or the institution. However, this section does not prohibit a person from using reasonable and necessary force:

  (1) to quell a disturbance;

  (2) to obtain possession of weapons or other dangerous objects upon the person of or within the control of a student;

  (3) for the purpose of self defense; or

  (4) for the protection of persons or property. (Added 1983, No. 145 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1995, No. 35, § 3; 1999, No. 113 (Adj. Sess.), § 6; 2003, No. 91 (Adj. Sess.), § 5; 2003, No. 117 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2013, No. 92 (Adj. Sess.), § 123, eff. Feb. 14, 2014; 2019, No. 131 (Adj. Sess.), § 74.)