- October 17, 2024
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Flagler Schools will be making several changes to its Code of Student Conduct for the upcoming school year, including dress code, attendance and disciplinary action.
Student Supports and Behavior Coordinator John Fanelli told the Flagler School Board at its July 9 workshop meeting that while there were not a great many changes made to the code, the focus areas where changes were made were primarily in the dress code, discipline and attendance. The changes, if approved by the Flagler School Board, will go into effect for the 2024-2025 school year.
Many of the changes were updating definitions for disciplinary actions. One of the biggest changes is to the definition of plagiarism, which is now encompassed by the overarching subhead of “Academic Dishonesty."
Academic dishonesty, as defined in the proposed 2024-2025 Code of Student Conduct, "encompasses various acts that deliberately undermine the principles of independent, original work and honest representation of knowledge and skills. Examples include, but are not limited to: plagiarism, cheating, academic fraud, fabrication, and artificial intelligence (AI) misuse."
AI misuse is defined as using an AI program or tool to complete assignments, take tests or perform "any academic activity," either without express permission to do so or in a way that represents the content as the student's own work.
"I'm glad to see the plagiarism piece including AI," school board member Colleen Conklin said.
Following changing the plagiarism to academic dishonesty are additional disciplinary actions for second, third and repeat offenses. First and second offenses remain mostly the same — referral, parent contact and a zero on the assignment — with, for second offenses, the addition of an academic integrity plan for the student and the possibility of an out of school suspension.
For third and repeat offenses, students could receive a referral, parent contact, a zero on the assignment, an out of school suspension and the loss of academic or extracurricular privileges.
The disciplinary section also changes the definition of "skipping class" as being intentionally out of class, without staff permission, for more than five minutes, rather than 10.
Another new offense added to the code is the violation of safety drill procedures. It is classified as a or major offense and is defined as the "intentional disruption of any school or district initiated safety drill on school board property that potentially jeopardizes the health and safety of student and/or employee."
Per the updated dress code, if the approved, students in sixth through 12th grade will be allowed to wear flip flops and slides to class, where before, middle school students could not wear them.
The dress code will also remove the edict "pajamas shall not be worn as clothing on campus." Instead, the schools will refer to the code's current outline of appropriate bottom attire: "Must be worn securely at the waist. Bottom attire must be no shorter than mid-thigh. No rips or tears in clothing above the mid-thigh."
Fanelli said one area where some parents had concerns were a change in policy on using personal technological devices on the bus. The new code prohibits the use of personal electronic devices on busses without advanced permission from the driver.
Fanelli said a parent reached out, concerned about students being disciplined for the use during emergency situations.
"In the case of an emergency, we would not be disciplining students for things that were reasonable and rational for for the time," he said.
The changes will be on the School Board’s July 23 agenda for final approval, Fanelli said.
