Categories of Behavior Descriptors and Responses

The assault of, assault and battery of, or intentional aggressive physical contact with, another person, including a student, staff member, or volunteer, is strictly prohibited. Unlike fighting, these offenses do not involve mutual, intentional participation. Note: Behavior that aligns to a student’s expected development will not result in discipline for assault or assault and battery although it may be addressed in other ways.

Assault is an intentional act, such as gestures or words, that results in a reasonable expectation that the other person is at imminent risk of physical harm or offensive contact, but physical contact does not occur. For example, a person may make a fist and use punching gestures during an argument even if no contact is made.

Assault and battery is when a student intentionally makes harmful or offensive contact with another person causing physical injury. Battery includes but is not limited to biting, hitting, kicking, punching, or any other form of physical aggression, including contact, that results in injury .

Other intentional aggressive physical contact such as shoving, pushing, striking, biting, or other use of force that does not result in a physical injury will also result in discipline.

To ensure that order is maintained in schools, the assault, assault and battery, or striking of any school division employee including substitute staff members or volunteers is of special concern. Consequently, assault and battery, or striking of any staff member or volunteer requires a mandatory referral to the SHD for consideration of expulsion.

Attendance – Tardies, Truancy, and Chronic Absenteeism

Violating state law and school division policy relating to attendance is forbidden. The failure to attend school without a legitimate excuse (e.g., illness, doctor appointment, funeral in the immediate family, administrative approval) or the failure to report to school/class on time or for a portion of the day without a legitimate excuse is forbidden.

The following SBAR offenses may not be assigned to in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, or class restriction as a disciplinary consequence: BAP4, BAP5, BSC24, and BSO15.

Automobile Violations, Abuse of Car, Vehicle Privileges

Students may bring cars and other vehicles onto school grounds only with the permission of school administration. Cars and other vehicles must be operated safely in compliance with school rules and state and local laws. Driving or parking in restricted areas may result in disciplinary action, including the loss of parking privileges. The owner and/or operator of any car or other vehicle that is located on or operated on school property consents, by virtue of such operation and/or location of the car or vehicle on school property, to the search of such a vehicle when reasonable suspicion exists that prohibited items as described in PWCS policy and regulation may be inside it. Students who violate these rules are subject to discipline, which may include loss of driving or parking privileges on school grounds, out-of-school suspension and further disciplinary action.

Bomb and Other Explosive or Incendiary Device -- Threat

The following acts are strictly prohibited and will result in a mandatory referral to the SHD for consideration of a recommendation for expulsion:

• A threat made by any means to bomb, burn, or otherwise damage a school building or facility, including any threat involving explosives, incendiary devices, hoax explosive devices, or chemical bombs.
• A communication made by any means and known by the student to be false that a bomb, explosives, incendiary devices, hoax explosive devices, or chemical bomb, is present at a school, the property of a school, or at a school activity or event regardless of location.

Depending on the facts and circumstances of the incident and the student, the hearing office may instead impose a lesser discipline or no discipline as appropriate.

Bullying and Cyberbullying

Bullying and retaliation for reports of bullying will not be tolerated in PWCS.

Bullying means any aggressive and unwanted behavior that is intended to harm, intimidate, or humiliate the victim; involves a real or perceived power imbalance between the aggressor or aggressors and victim; and is repeated over time or causes severe emotional trauma. Cyberbullying means bullying that occurs through the use of technology, including through cell phones and other electronic devices or technology capable of accessing the internet. Ordinary teasing, horseplay, argument, or peer conflict is not considered bullying or cyberbullying. (Code of Virginia § 22.1-276.01)

Students who experience or witness acts of bullying or cyberbullying should immediately report the incidents to a school administrator. Parents of students who report that they have been bullied and parents of students who are accused of bullying will be notified, All allegations of bullying will be documented and investigated. Consequences will be administered to all students involved in substantiated acts of bullying or cyberbullying. If bullying or cyberbullying results in physical harm, the students will be disciplined for assault and battery, instead of the offenses included in this section.

Bullying or cyberbullying that targets a student on the basis of the student’s membership in, or perceived membership in, a protected class, will be investigated and treated as harassment. The use of derogatory slurs or symbols that demean or intimidate an individual or group may constitute harassment instead of bullying if they constitute hate speech or target a protected class.

Cell Phones

See Unauthorized Possession or Use of Cell Phones.

Cheating, including Plagiarism

Students shall not cheat, participate in any form of plagiarism (which includes, but is not limited to, self-plagiarism, the unauthorized use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), or recycling one’s own work), assist or encourage others to do so, or willfully disregard student expectations pertaining to assignments or tests. Students who engage in copyright infringement and plagiarism will be counseled, may lose credit for the assignment, and may be referred to the school administrator for disciplinary action. The school administrator will notify the parent/legal guardian of the incident and any discipline assigned.

Disruptive Behavior (Disobedience and Disrespect)

Any physical or verbal disturbance which interrupts or interferes with teaching and the orderly conduct of school activities is prohibited.

Students are required to obey school rules and submit in a respectful manner to the authority and directions of teachers and other school personnel. No student may assist another student in the breaking of a school rule. The following behaviors that substantially disrupt the orderly learning environment include but are not limited to:

• Unwillingness to submit to authority or refusal to respond to a reasonable request.
• Cursing or using offensive language, including remarks intended to demean a person’s race, religion, sex, national origin, disabling condition, intellectual ability, or membership in a protected class. This includes actions or displays of an obscene nature, the wearing of clothing or adornments which themselves convey sexually suggestive messages, or any materials that are obscene or sexually suggestive.
• Cursing, violent, and/or abusive language towards another student and/or school personnel.
• Students shall not engage in conduct that is or is intended to be disruptive of any school activity, function, or process of the school, is dangerous to the health or safety of students or others, or results in destruction of property. Excessive and disruptive noise, activity, or possession of items including but not limited to: toys, laser pointers, skateboards, radios, and unauthorized photographs and video recordings which disrupt the peaceful and normal operation of the school and/or which threaten the student’s own safety, or the safety and activities of others is forbidden.
• Students may be disciplined for kissing, touching, hugging, and other public displays of affection.

Dress and Grooming (Student)

Students are urged to dress in a manner consistent with maintaining a respectful, distraction-free environment which supports a focus on learning for all students. Their overall appearance, while on school grounds or virtually, should be based on the health and safety of an inclusive school community. It is understood that student dress may reflect outdoor weather conditions throughout the school year, however, students should refrain from wearing any item of clothing which may cause a distraction or disruption to the educational process or compromise the physical and emotional health and safety of the student or others. Students whose appearance disrupts instruction may be asked to change clothing.

The PWCS student dress and grooming guidelines are created to ensure equity in student expression and staff enforcement and are not intended to discriminate based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, genetic information, or any other basis prohibited by law. The dress and grooming standards apply equally to all students regardless of gender, gender identity, or gender expression.

Students are permitted to wear any religiously and ethnically specific or significant head covering or hairstyle.

Permitted head coverings and hairstyles include, but are not limited to:

• Braids
• Cornrows
• Headwraps
• Hijabs
• Locs
• Yarmulkes

Prohibited items of clothing include clothing items which:

• Expose or make undergarments visible.
• Fit in a manner as to reveal or expose undergarments.
• Contain vulgar, discriminatory, lewd, patently offensive, or obscene language or images.
• Contain threats or gang symbols.
• Promote violence or the illegal use of weapons, or the use of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs, and/or associated paraphernalia.
• Are accessories that could be regarded as or used as a weapon.
• Headwear that covers one’s entire head or face, unless the headwear is:
  • Worn as part of one’s religion.
  • Worn for medical reasons.
  • Worn for personal prevention practices, like in the case of infectious diseases.
  • Worn for an approved school event.
  • Worn as an expression of one’s cultural or ethnic background.

No PWCS employee may enforce the Student Dress and Grooming provisions by direct physical contact with the student or the student’s attire. No student shall be required to undress in front of any individual to comply with these provisions.

Fighting

Fighting, in contrast to assault or battery, involves mutual, intentional participation in a physical altercation between two or more individuals, where both parties are actively engaged.

Fighting, teasing, taunting, or engaging in verbal confrontation is prohibited and will result in discipline regardless of which participant is the aggressor.

Inciting a fight by encouraging others to fight, facilitating a fight, and/or cheering on a fight is also prohibited and will result in discipline. This includes acting as a look out or interfering with a teacher or other school official who seeks to intervene during a fight. A teacher or other school official may use reasonable and necessary physical force to stop fighting or to prevent injury or damage to other people or property. Any student who interferes with a teacher or other school official in their attempt to stop a fight and restore order shall be disciplined.

A student’s assertion of self-defense must meet the criteria as defined in Appendix C for consideration during the disciplinary process.

Grades PK-5

Following a student's first fight, a letter of warning or suspension shall be sent to their parents or legal guardian. If the student is involved in another fight, the student may be placed in in-school suspension or may receive an out-of-school suspension.

Grades 6-12

If a student has multiple violations for fighting in the same twelve-month time frame, the student may be referred for further disciplinary action, for a possible long-term suspension or reassignment to an alternative education program. A hearing officer may make a recommendation to the School Board for expulsion for students with multiple fights during the same school year or for those whose fights involved gangs, weapons, or severe injury.

Gambling

A student shall not bet money or other things of value or knowingly play or participate in any game involving a bet while on school property, on school buses, or during any school-sponsored activity.

Gang or Gang-Related Activity

Gang activity, recruitment, and expressions of gang membership will not be tolerated. Gang-related actions, speech, gestures, clothing, symbols, or other signs of gang membership or gang activity are prohibited at school and school related activities. Any student involved in gang-related behavior at school is subject to disciplinary action, up to and including a referral to the SHD for further disciplinary action.

A gang is defined as any group of three or more persons whose purpose includes:

• Commission of illegal acts.
• Participation in activities that threaten the safety of person or property.
• Disruption of the school environment.
• Creation of an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.

Gang activity is defined as:

• Wearing, using, distributing, displaying, or selling any clothing, jewelry, emblem, badge, symbol, sign, or other thing that is evidence of membership or affiliation in any gang.
• Committing any act or omission, or using any speech, either verbal or non-verbal (such as gestures or handshakes) showing membership or affiliation in a gang.
• Using any speech or committing any act or omission in furtherance of the interests of any gang, including: (a) soliciting, hazing and initiating others for membership in any gang, (b) requesting any person to pay protection or otherwise intimidating or threatening any person, or (c) committing any other illegal act or other violation of school policy and inciting other students to act with physical violence.
• Inappropriate congregating, bullying, cyberbullying, harassment, intimidation, degradation, disgrace and/or related activities which are likely to cause bodily danger, physical harm, or mental harm to students, employees, or visitors.

Harassment, including Sex-Based Harassment

Repeatedly annoying or attacking a student or group of students, or personnel, creating an intimidating or hostile educational or work environment for any reason. Harassment demeans, threatens, intimidates, or harms an individual or group in such a way as to cause anxiety or fear for safety. Harassment that targets the victim on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin (including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics), sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions including lactation, age, marital status or parental status, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or any other basis prohibited by law (protected class) shall be investigated following procedures outlined in PWCS polices and regulations, as applicable.

Please note that the use of derogatory slurs or symbols that demean or intimidate an individual or group on the basis on their membership in or perceived membership in a protected class will be investigated as harassment. Note that the imposition of discipline for conduct that constitutes Title IX Sexual Harassment shall follow the procedures set forth in PWCS policies and regulation instead of those outlined in the Code of Behavior.

Any complaint of harassment or sexual harassment should be reported as required by PWCS policy and regulation. See the PWCS website for the processes of reporting, investigating, and resolving complaints of harassment/sexual harassment.

Hazing

Students shall not engage in hazing. “Hazing” is defined as recklessly or intentionally endangering the health or safety of a student or students or inflicting bodily harm on a student or students.

Students shall not engage in behavior that recklessly or intentionally endangers the health or safety of others or inflicts bodily injury on a student in connection with initiation, affiliation, or admission into a club, group, organization, or student body. Violators are subject to disciplinary action, and possible criminal consequences. Code of Virginia §18.2-56 imposes a Class 1 misdemeanor penalty for hazing violations meaning confinement in jail for not more than 12 months and a fine of not more than $2,500, either or both.

Persistently Dangerous Behaviors (PD

These behaviors are used in calculations to identify a school as persistently dangerous. “The incidents to be used as measures for determining persistently dangerous public schools are those violent crimes and offenses against a person and the possession of drugs with intent to distribute or sell, all designated as felonies in the criminal section of the Code of Virginia (Title 18.2).” These behaviors require a report to the Superintendent’s office and law enforcement and should be addressed in a manner consistent with a level 5 response for all grade levels, PK-12.

Behaviors described in the Virginia’s Unsafe School Choice Option Policy required by the federal Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015. 

Sub-Category I

Sub-Category II

Sub-Category III

Profanity

No student shall use vulgar, lewd, patently offensive, or indecent language or gestures.

Prohibited Substances

In order to assure the safety and welfare of students, staff, and other persons on school property or at school activities, certain substances are prohibited on any school property, at school bus stops, on school buses, at any school-related activity, regardless of where that activity takes place, going to or from school, or at any school-related activity.

Students involved in the possession, use, receipt or attempted receipt, purchase or attempted purchase, distribution, or attempted distribution of drugs (illegal, prescription, and/or over the counter), alcohol, inhalant intoxicants, look-alikes, placebos, or paraphernalia, on school property or at school-related activities, or who arrive at school under the influence of same, are subject to suspension and/or expulsion from school. School property means any real property owned or leased by the School Board, or any vehicle owned or leased by the School Board, or any vehicle owned, leased, or operated by, or on behalf of, the School Board. Distribution includes the delivery, transfer, sale, exchange, barter, gift, or sharing of a prohibited substance or related paraphernalia.

Students may also be subject to disciplinary action for conduct involving prohibited substances which occurs off school grounds, if the conduct results in a material disruption to the operation of the school, if the conduct is planned in school or at school activities, if the conduct occurs during a school sponsored activity, if the conduct threatens the safety or welfare of students, staff, or school property, or if the conduct is otherwise connected to the school.

Examples of Prohibited Substances

Examples of prohibited substances and related paraphernalia include, but are not limited to, alcohol, non-alcoholic brews, alcohol products, or alcohol containers; illegal drugs and substances; prescription and over-the-counter drugs; inhalant intoxicants or other substances inhaled for the purpose of intoxication; anabolic steroids; look-alikes or placebos of the aforementioned items; drug or alcohol paraphernalia, and tobacco or nicotine vapor products as defined in § 18.2-371.2 of the Virginia Code.

Treatment of Medications
Students for whom medication is necessary while at school or school-related activities, shall provide written documentation from the parent(s)/guardian(s) regarding the necessity for, and dosage of such medication to the school nurse or other school official. All such medications must be immediately surrendered to the school nurse or appropriate school personnel and may only be consumed by students, or be in the possession of students, with the approval of the school nurse or appropriate school personnel. The procedures for administering medication are delineated in Regulation 757-4, “Management of Medication Administration in the School Setting.”

No student who holds a valid written certification for the use of cannabidiol oil or THC-A oil issued by a practitioner in accordance with § 4.1-1601 of the Virginia Code for the possession or use of such oil, and whose possession and use otherwise complies with the student’s individualized health plan and Regulation 757-4 shall be subject to discipline for possession or use of the prescribed substance.

Students who possess, use, receive or attempt to receive, purchase or attempt to purchase, distribute or attempt to distribute medications at school or engage in the theft of prescription medications belonging to staff or other students are be subject to discipline up to and including long-term suspension, reassignment to an alternative educational setting, or expulsion.

Disciplinary Consequences

• Mandatory Expulsion for Controlled Substances, Imitation Controlled Substances, or Marijuana
  
  Section 22.1-277.08 of the Virginia Code requires the School Board to expel from attendance any student who the Board has determined to have brought a controlled substance, imitation controlled substance, or marijuana, onto school property or to a school-sponsored activity. However, the principal, a hearing officer appointed by the Student Hearing Department, the School Board Disciplinary Committee, or the full School Board have the authority to impose a lesser disciplinary consequence or no consequence when special circumstances exist, based on the facts of a particular situation. Special circumstances include, but are not limited to, the statutory criteria set forth at § 22.1-277.06 (C) of the Virginia Code, as described in Regulation 745-1, “Long-Term Suspension or Expulsion of Students.”
• Disciplinary Consequences for Other Prohibited Substances
  
  As described Regulation 735-1, “Prohibited Substances,” the list of substances and paraphernalia that are strictly prohibited and for which students may be disciplined is broader than the list of substances deemed illegal under Virginia law or for which Virginia law mandates expulsion. Students may be disciplined up to and including long-term suspension, reassignment to an alternative educational setting. or expulsion for the possession, use, receipt or attempted receipt, purchase or attempted purchase, or distribution or attempted distribution, of any substance or paraphernalia prohibited by PWCS regulations.
  
  In some cases, there may be a question about whether or not a substance or object is considered to be prohibited. The nature and appearance of the substance or related paraphernalia, its purpose, and how it was used, or intended to be used, shall be considered when deciding if the substance or paraphernalia warrants a recommendation for disciplinary action up to and including expulsion.

Duty to Report Prohibited Substances
All employees and students of PWCS are required to immediately notify the principal, assistant principal, any school resource officer, security personnel, teacher, or other school employee if they have reason to believe that there are, or are likely to be, prohibited substances or related paraphernalia in school, on school grounds, on school buses, at bus stops, on the way to or from school, or at any school-related activity. Students who have such knowledge but fail to report the presence or anticipated presence of prohibited substances or related paraphernalia may themselves be subject to disciplinary action.

Additional Consequences of a Prohibited Substance Violation

• All secondary students who receive disciplinary consequences for prohibited substances for the first time must complete a PWCS substance education program. The student may also be subject to disciplinary probation for 90 calendar days during which time principals may require subsequent follow up with the substance abuse prevention staff.
• School principals at all levels are encouraged to provide the parents of all students who engage in a prohibited substance offense with information about community resources. Information about substance abuse and available community resources are posted on www.pwcs.edu.
• An out-of-school suspension for a substance abuse violation will result in an immediate suspension for a minimum of 30 calendar days from participation in all school activities (teams, clubs, and all other school-sponsored activities), including practices and attendance at such activities. Coaches and/or sponsors, with the approval of the school administration, may suspend students from participation in school-sponsored activities for violations of the rules of the team, club, or activity regarding prohibited substances regardless of whether the student was assigned a suspension of any length.
• A student who is suspended from school for a period longer than 30 days or who is expelled from school for a substance abuse offense is not allowed to participate in such school activities or to be present on school property without the express written permission of the SHD for the duration of the suspension or expulsion.
• A hearing officer may require a student to participate in any substance abuse prevention or intervention activities offered by the school division. A hearing officer may also require a student who has been determined in be in possession, or under the influence, of a prohibited substance to undergo evaluation for drug and/or alcohol abuse, and if recommended by the evaluator, and with consent of the student’s parents, to participate in a treatment program if one is available at no cost to the family, as a condition for return to a traditional school or reassignment from off campus Computer-Based Instruction to an in-person nontraditional education program.

Alcohol, Controlled Substances, Imitation Controlled Substances, Marijuana, Prescription and Over the Counter Drugs

Drug Paraphernalia

Tobacco

Reporting Requirement to VDOE of Certain Criminal Charges and Authority to Take Action in Response to Certain Criminal Charges and Convictions

Pursuant to Code of Virginia § 16.1-260(G), the Court Services Unit of the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court must notify the Superintendent when a student has been charged with certain criminal offenses identified by the Code of Virginia. Pursuant to Code of Virginia § 22.1-279.3:1, the Superintendent must report annually the charges received to the Virginia Department of Education for the purpose of recording the frequency of such incidents to make such information available to the public. This annual report to the Virginia Department of Education does not include the names or other identifying information of the students charged.

The School Board and PWCS staff are committed to maintaining the schools as safe and healthy places in which to learn, free from the impact of violence, weapons, gang activity, substance abuse, and other harmful influences. Virginia law gives PWCS the authority to take action to remove students from school or reassign to an alternative education program in response to certain criminal charges and convictions regardless of whether the incident occurred on school grounds or in the community. The authority to act in response to a criminal charge or conviction is separate from the authority to impose discipline in response to violations of the Code of Behavior. Students who engage in misconduct that violates the Code of Behavior and that also results in a charge or conviction of certain criminal laws may be subject to both processes.

PWCS has authority to reassign a student to a nontraditional education program pursuant to Code of Virginia § 22.1-277.2:1.

and the procedures set forth in PWCS policy and regulation if the student has been charged with, or found guilty or not innocent of, an offense related to the Commonwealth’s laws on weapons, alcohol or drugs, intentional injury to another person, or for a crime required to be reported to the Superintendent pursuant to Code of Virginia § 16.1-260(G).

PWCS has authority to suspend or expel any student who has been adjudicated delinquent upon receipt of a report made pursuant to Code of Virginia §16.1-305 or a conviction for an offense listed in Code of Virginia § 16.1-260(G). under the procedures set forth in PWCS policy and regulation.

School Bus Violations

See Transportation Expectations.

Stalking

Stalking is a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety, or the safety of others, or to expect that the person would suffer substantial emotional distress. Stalking behavior may include, but is not limited to, making repeated and unwanted contact with the person through any means including but not limited to phone calls, mail, emails, texts, or social media; following or otherwise tracking the person; making threats to the person either directly or indirectly; and damaging, or threatening to damage, the person’s property. PWCS may impose school discipline for conduct described in this section even if that conduct would not be, or has not been found to be, the criminal act of stalking under Code of Virginia § 18.2-60.3, which is referenced in SBAR Code BSC21.

Technology – Misuse or Unauthorized Use

See Unauthorized or Misuse of Technology.

Theft

Taking without permission, or attempting to take without permission, school property or personal property of others is prohibited. All incidents involving theft or attempted theft of prescription medications belonging to others, including but not limited to students and staff members shall be reported to the principal or designee and shall result in discipline for possession or attempted receipt of Prohibited Substances. Violators are subject to disciplinary action at school and may be referred to appropriate authorities for legal action.

Threats Against Students and Staff

A threat for which a student may be disciplined is a statement made orally, in writing, or depicted visually, that conveys an intention to intimidate, commit violence, injure, or take other harmful action, or to encourage others to intimidate, commit violence, injure, or take other harmful action, against a student, a staff member, or other school officials. A student may be disciplined for making a threat (1) even if the threat or is neither sent or delivered to, nor observed or known of by, the person to whom the threat is directed; (2) regardless of whether the person to whom the threat is directed is intimidated by or in reasonable apprehension of harm due to the threat; and (3) regardless of whether the threat is found to be credible.

The type of threat, as described above, is only one type of behavior reviewed through the threat assessment process. The threat assessment process is not a disciplinary process and its findings are not subject to appeal. A finding by a threat assessment team that a threat made by a student is credible is not required for disciplinary action to be imposed.

Transportation Expectations

While on transportation provided by PWCS, such as school buses, it is essential for all students to contribute to a safe and respectful environment. Students are expected to behave in a respectful and orderly manner at all times while entering, exiting, and riding on the bus. This includes behaving in ways that do not distract the driver or endanger the safety of others on the bus such as following instructions of the bus driver or bus attendant, remaining seated while the bus is in motion, and keeping talking or other noise at a low volume. Students will be disciplined for violations of the Code of Behavior, that occur on the bus including but not limited to failure to follow instructions, use of profanity, fighting, assault and battery, bullying, or vandalism.

In addition to discipline under the Code of Behavior, student misconduct may result in suspension of bus privileges, except in the case of students with disabilities receiving services whose IEP or Section 504 team has determined that transportation is necessary to enable the student to obtain the benefit of educational programs and opportunities.

If a student has been suspended from bus privileges, the parent is responsible for providing the student with transportation to and from school. A meeting between the parent, the bus driver, the principal, and, in some instances, a Transportation Department representative, must be held to determine a solution before the student will be permitted to resume riding the bus or other vehicle.

For students with disabilities receiving services whose IEP or Section 504 team has determined that transportation is necessary to enable the student to obtain the benefit of educational programs and opportunities whose behavior would otherwise warrant a bus suspension should be referred to the student’s IEP or Section 504 team for a meeting to consider whether additional behavior supports and changes to the student’s transportation services are needed.

Trespassing

Trespassing in violation of the Code of Behavior means entering or remaining on PWCS property without written permission after receiving notice that one’s presence at school or on school grounds is prohibited, remaining at school or on school property after being told by a school official to leave, entering areas of a school or other PWCS building that is not open to students, or entering a school or other PWCS building after the school or building is closed. This includes school buses or school-sponsored events regardless of location.

Students serving an out-of-school suspension for 1-10 days will be notified that they may not be on school property without the written permission of the principal. Students who are serving a long-term suspension, have been assigned to a nontraditional education program, who are expelled or who have been excluded from attendance in PWCS may be prohibited by a hearing officer, the School Board Disciplinary Committee, or the School Board from entering or remaining on all School Board property or parts thereof such as the grounds or buildings of traditional schools. Students will receive written notice explaining the scope of the prohibition and the process to request permission from the SHD to enter PWCS property.

A student does not require prior written permission to enter school grounds when accompanied by a parent for the sole reason of attending an in-person meeting or hearing set by school officials to decide a disciplinary matter or disciplinary appeal involving the student. The student must receive the written permission of the principal or the SHD, as appropriate, for all other matters. Permission is routinely given to permit the student to come on to school grounds for testing or evaluations for which the student’s presence is necessary. Permission will not be granted to allow the student to attend school events or extra curricular activities.

Students who violate state criminal laws against trespassing or other related conduct may also be subject to criminal prosecution.

Unauthorized Access – Endangering Others

Student conduct that may put others in danger will not be permitted. This includes but is not limited to, allowing access to others through unauthorized entrances (e.g., opening, blocking, or wedging a corridor door open).

Students are strictly prohibited from bypassing safety screening technology by opening exterior doors that are not monitored. Such actions pose a risk to the safety and security of the school environment and are considered a violation of the Code of Behavior.

Unauthorized Possession or Use of Cell Phones or Personal Electronic Communication Devices

Cell Phone means a personal device capable of making calls, transmitting pictures or video, or sending or receiving messages through electronic means.

Personal Electronic Communication Device means any personal device capable of connecting to a smartphone, the internet, a cellular or Wi-Fi network, or directly connects to another similar device. Personal electronic communication devices may include some wearable devices such as smart watches, AI enabled glasses, as well as personal headphones, laptops, tablets, and other future personal electronic communication devices with the above mentioned characteristics.

Guidelines

1. Elementary and Combined Schools:
   1. All cell phones and personal electronic communication devices must be turned off and stored away and may not be used at any time within the school building or on school grounds or during any instructional periods regardless of location including field trips.
   2. Students are permitted to use their cell phones and personal electronic communication device(s) while on school buses, while in parent/guardian vehicles, and before they enter or after they exit school grounds.
2. Middle and High Schools:
   1. All cell phones and personal electronic communication devices must be turned off and stored away during the bell-to-bell school day and during any instructional periods regardless of location including field trips.
   2. All cell phones and personal electronic communication devices may be turned on and used within the school and on the school campus before or after the bell-to-bell school day.
3. Rules Applicable to All Schools and Grade Levels:
   1. Students, regardless of age or grade level, are required to follow the rules applicable to the specific school where they are present. For example, if a high school student is attending an activity at an elementary school, the high school student must follow the cell phone and personal electronic communication device rules applicable to elementary schools while present on the elementary school campus.
   2. Use of cell phones and personal electronic communication devices is prohibited in all locker rooms and restrooms at all times.
   3. Cell phones and personal electronic communication devices may be used on school buses provided the device does not distract the driver, compromise safety, or violate the Prohibited Content and Use for All Students provisions detailed below.
   4. Use of cell phones and personal electronic communication devices during extra-curricular and co-curricular activities held outside of the bell-to-bell school day will be determined by the coach, sponsor, or instructor.
4. Disability and Other Accommodations:
   1. Exceptions to these guidelines may be granted as disability accommodations through Section 504 plans or Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) or for students in English Language Learner programs when necessary to ensure student access to the curriculum, school, and school-sponsored activities. Exceptions also may be granted as part of a student’s safety or other support plan.

The PWCS School Board voted to adopt a bell-to-bell cell phone-free education Policy 729, “Cell Phone-Free Education.” More information can be found on the PWCS’ website under Wireless Communication Device Usage.

Unauthorized or Misuse of Technology

Computers, computer networks, and other electronic technology shall be used only for valid educational purposes and only with the approval of a school staff member. When using electronic technology in the school, students are required to abide by the COB and adhere to the standards defined within PWCS policy and regulation. These policies and regulations are available online at PWCS Policies and Regulations. Unacceptable uses of technology include, but are not limited to:

• Violating the privacy rights of others.
• Using, producing, distributing, or receiving profanity, obscenity, or material that bullies, harasses, offends, threatens, or degrades others. This includes cyberbullying, a form of bullying that involves the transmission, receipt, or display of electronic messages or images that may be AI generated. See also Bullying and Harassment.
• Producing, transmitting, possessing, and/or sharing images, messages, or other material of a sexual nature using a wireless communication device.
• Copying commercial software in violation of copyright law.
• Using technology for financial gain or commercial or illegal activity.
• Using technology for product advertisement or political endorsement.
• Reposting personal communications without the author’s prior consent.
• Using technology in violation of other rules and regulations of the COB.
• Use of technology off school property which has a material effect on the operation or general welfare of the school division, impacts the integrity of the educational process, threatens the safety and welfare of students, staff, or school property, occurs when the student is under the school’s authority or otherwise invades the rights of students or staff.

Violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action, loss of technology-use privileges, and penalties under law. Willful irresponsibility may lead to corrective action. Deliberate attempts to degrade or disrupt technology system performance in violation of state and federal law may result in criminal charges.

Vandalism or Other Damage to School or Personal Property

Vandalism and/or damage to school or personal property is prohibited.

Vandalism is the intentional destruction, defacing, damaging, or removing of school property or the personal property of another member of the school community, including but not limited to students and staff members, without the intent to steal. Vandalism violations include, but are not limited to,arson, graffiti, destruction of computer hardware, modification of installed software, modifications to network configurations, and/or installation of unauthorized software, including viruses.

Virginia law authorizes the School Board to take legal action to recover the cost of damage to school property from the responsible student’s parents. Vandalism may also result in criminal charges. See Code of Virginia § 18.2-138.

Weapons

The rules governing weapons and other objects prohibited by PWCS are outlined in Regulation 775-1, “Weapons and Other Prohibited Objects,” and summarized in this section. Weapons and other prohibited items are not permitted on any school property, on school buses, going to or from school, or at any school-related activity, regardless of where that activity takes place. School property means any real property owned or leased by the School Board or any vehicle owned, leased, or operated by or on behalf of the School Board. Students may also be subject to disciplinary action for weapons offenses that occur off school grounds, if the offense results in material disruption to the operation of the school, is planned in school or at school activities, occurs during a school-sponsored activity, threatens the safety and welfare of students, staff, or school property, is otherwise connected to the school, or results in an adjudication of delinquency reportable to the Superintendent as required by Code of Virginia §§ 6.1-260, 16.1-301, and 16.1-305.1.

Possession of Firearms and Other Statutory Weapons – Mandatory Expulsion

Principals shall suspend all students who possess weapons detailed below for 10 school days and shall refer the student to the SHD for further disciplinary action. The student shall be expelled for 365 days unless a SHD hearing officer or the School Board determines, upon reviewing the specific facts of the case, that special circumstances warrant no disciplinary action or a different form of discipline or period of expulsion. Special circumstances may include but are not limited to, the factors set forth in subsection C of Code of Virginia § 22.1-277.06.

• Weapons in violation of the Federal Improving America’s School Act of 1994 (Part F-Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994) and Code of Virginia §22.1-277.07.
• A firearm, destructive device, firearm muffler, firearm silencer, or pneumatic gun. Weapons in violation of Code of Virginia § 18.2-308.1.
  • A stun weapon.
  • Knife, except a pocketknife having a blade of less than three inches.
  • Any dirk, bowie knife, stiletto knife, ballistic knife, machete, razor, sling bow, spring stick, metal knucks, or blackjack.
  • Any flailing instrument consisting of two or more rigid parts connected in such a manner as to allow them to swing freely, which may be known as a nun chahka, nun chuck, nunchaku, shuriken, or fighting chain.
  • Any disc, of whatever configuration, having at least two points or pointed blades which is designed to be thrown or propelled, and which may be known as a throwing star or oriental dart.
  • Any weapon of like kind.

Possession of Other Weapons or Prohibited Objects – Disciplinary Consequences

The principal shall have the discretion to impose appropriate disciplinary sanctions, up to and including a 10-day suspension from school and a referral for further disciplinary action, for the possession of the following items:

• Pocketknives (Blade less than three inches)
• Box cutters
• Pepper spray
• Ammunition
• Razor blades
• Fireworks
• Sling shots
• Other like items
• Look-alike or toy weapons

Principals must impose appropriate discipline for possession of any weapon or prohibited object listed below as outlined in Regulation 775-1, “Weapons and Other Prohibited Objects.” Depending on the particular circumstances of the student and situation, principals may impose school-based consequences, short-term suspension, or refer the student to SHD for further disciplinary action such as long-term suspension or expulsion.