A middle school French teacher on a field trip to Montreal found what appeared to be marijuana in one of her student's possession. As the school principal, you must determine the appropriate steps to take in response. This includes notifying the superintendent and police, identifying witnesses, respecting the student's rights, documenting the incident, and considering whether to send the student home early or impact on the rest of the trip. Key decisions involve balancing education, legal issues, and ensuring student and staff safety.

1. Across the Border A Case Study Presented by: EDA600 Group 2 Paul Cary, Jennifer Conklin-Frank, Harris Henry, and Kevin Schucker

2. The Situation You are principal of a suburban middle school whose eighth grade French students are on a four-day cultural field trip to Montreal, Quebec, Canada. You receive a phone call at home on the second day of the trip from the French teacher in charge, stating that a student was found to be in possession of what she has reason to believe is marijuana. The teacher indicates that when she went into the student’s room, she saw that he had “rolling papers” among his things on his nightstand. She searched his belongings and found a plastic bag containing what appeared to be marijuana. One other student was in the room but did not seem involved.

3. Items to Think About

4. Question 1:How do you determine if it is actually marijuana? The teacher could examine it, The teacher could ask the student, The police will conduct a chemical test to determine if it marijuana.

5. Question 2:What is school policy regarding such an issue?

6. School Code of Conduct Districts all have an approved Code of Conduct that governs the conduct of students and the consequences of breaking the code of conduct. The Code of Conduct also provides guidance on rights of students.

7. School Code of Conduct

8. NY Penal Law

9. School Policy Applies A school sponsored field trip is an extension of the school. All school policies and rules apply during school sponsored activities.

11. Police

12. Parents

14. Notify him/her of situation and get guidance

15. Law Enforcement

16. Direct teacher to notify local law enforcement

17. Parents

18. Advise them of situation and actions being taken. Find out if they have means to travel to Montreal to deal with the situation

19. School Resource Officer

21. Others students on the field trip

23. Search and Seizure Students have a reasonable expectation to privacy. The observation of rolling papers did give school officials reasonable cause to search the student’s belongings. Searches should be conducted with witnesses present. This should be an adult.

24. Interrogation A parent must give consent and/or be present during questioning by authorities. Every effort should be made to gain that consent prior to any police questioning. The police in this matter, may simply test and properly dispose of the drugs and leave it to the school as a school matter.

25. Question 7:Should the student(s) be sent home at the parent’s expense? If so, how?

27. Possible removal from trip.

28. Can parents pick student up?

29. How many days are remaining?

30. Is there staff available to escort student home?

33. Question 10:What other information do you need?

34. Action Steps

36. Question both for any knowledge of other students in possession

37. Determine source of contraband

38. Call and cooperate with authorities

40. Witnesses to search

41. Disposition of illegal substance (include police officer’s name and police report number)

42. Disposition of student

44. Other Considerations Why was a female teacher in a male student’s room? Was no other male teacher available to do room checks? If so, the teacher should not have been alone. Instead she should have had another adult with her to conduct these checks. Remaining parts of the trip. Cannot provide other students with details of incident. Simply, the student had to go home for personal reasons. Would continue trip provided proper supervision was still possible. With prior discipline history of student, a parent should have been invited to chaperone the trip. This way, any problems could be handled much more efficiently. (Student was permitted to go on trip as a favor to parents for extenuating circumstances.)