The number of discipline hearings in Fairfax County Public Schools has dropped by 30 percent in the last four years, including a 39 percent decrease in expulsion cases, according to a report from the school system.
School officials say the numbers prove that their campuses are safe despite high-profile discipline cases — including the suicide of a student who was caught with synthetic marijuana. But critics challenge that plenty of work remains to make the discipline system fair to kids.
During the 2010-2011 school year, hearing officers considered 716 disciplinary cases, most for expulsion (530), requests for re-entry into the school system by expelled students (105), or reassignment to other schools (62).
| Total discipline cases | |||||
| 2007-2008 | 2008-2009 | 2009-2010 | 2010-2011 | ||
| Total discipline cases | 1031 | 948 | 878 | 833 | 716 |
| Expulsion cases | 869* | n/a | 683 | 636 | 530 |
| *Estimate based on percentages given by school system. FCPS only provided data across the board for the last three school years. | |||||
| Source: Fairfax County Public Schools | |||||
| Drug and alcohol violations were the leading cause of discipline hearings. In 2010-2011, there were 242 cases: | |||||
| Possession-marijuana | 152 | ||||
| Possession-other | 32 | ||||
| Distribution-marijuana | 24 | ||||
| Distribution-other | 10 | ||||
| Possession-look-a-like drug | 10 | ||||
| Distribution-alcohol | 7 | ||||
| Under the influence | 5 | ||||
| Possession-paraphernalia | 2 | ||||
| Source: Fairfax County Public Schools | |||||
Cases have been steadily dropping, with 117 fewer heard compared with the 2009-2010 school year and 315 fewer cases than in 2006-2007. More than 177,000 students attend Fairfax County Public Schools; less than one-third of 1 percent of all students were recommended for expulsion.
“I think we had a couple high-profile cases that caused attention to [the discipline process] — and that wasn’t a bad thing — we can always look at it,” said Deputy Superintendent Richard Moniuszko. “But I think overall the message that got lost last year is our schools are safe places, and are getting safer.”
Moniuszko was referring to the case of 15-year-old Nick Stuban, a W.T. Woodson High School student who committed suicide after he admitted to purchasing synthetic marijuana and was kept out of school for months while awaiting a decision on his case.
Amid parent outrage, the Fairfax School Board overhauled its discipline process, including a stricter time frame for when hearings should be finished. Moniuszko said the county began tracking wait times late last spring and the school board will receive a report in the next few months.
The school board also recently voted to allow high school principals to put cameras in their cafeterias and other indoor spots, following a series of dangerous food fights.
“I haven’t seen anything that tells me that Fairfax is doing something to get these incidents down,” said Michelle Menapace, a member of parent group Fairfax County Zero Tolerance Reform. “If that were the case, why are [school board members] recommending video cameras for the cafeterias?”
Mary Ann Panarelli, director of intervention and prevention services, said half of the county’s 200 schools have received training to analyze what their specific discipline problems are and how to address them, ultimately cutting down on drug and weapon write-ups.
The “Positive Behavior Intervention System” went into effect about 10 years ago, but “it takes a school anywhere from three to five years to implement it with fidelity,” Panarelli said. “What you’re doing is really changing the culture of the school.”
