BEHAVIOR
All students have the right to learn in a safe and orderly environment.
Therefore, appropriate behavior is expected of all students at all times. Please
read and discuss the Code of Conduct from Henrico County Public Schools.
Students must follow these rules. Code of Conduct assemblies will be held in September and in
January. New students who come in during the year will
review the Code of Conduct with the counselor. Students are accountable to
the school from the time they leave home in the morning until they return in the
afternoon. This includes time spent at the bus stop, riding the bus, or walking
to or from school.
The guidelines listed below will apply when disciplining students for behaviors
that are disruptive to the learning environment. When deemed necessary, any
infraction listed below can result in an immediate suspension and/or referral to
the principal, school resource officer (SRO), and/or hearing officer. After a
student receives three or more infractions to the Code of Student Conduct, a
student will be suspended out of school to a hearing with the grade level
administrator/principal. During the hearing, the student will be placed on a
behavioral contract for the remainder of the school year. In the event the
student continues to display disruptive behavior, a hearing before the
Disciplinary Review Hearing Officer will occur with the recommendation of a
change in placement for the remainder of the school year. Note: The
information listed below does not outline every possible infraction with the
consequences. Students accumulating numerous infractions to the Code of
Student Conduct may receive OSS instead of the suggested consequences noted
below.
Rules, Regulations, and Procedures: All students are required to follow the
guidelines set forth in the Code of Student Conduct, which includes a
standard of conduct for use of Technology hardware/software and the
Internet. Please see the complete HCPS Code of Student Conduct, online at
http://www.henrico.k12.va.us/Pdf/Instruction/CodeOfConduct.pdf
Inappropriate Behavior
Consequences
AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR
DIRECTED TOWARDS A
STAFF MEMBER/THREAT
Cursing at a staff member
Assault / Threatening Comments
OSS and Principal or
Disciplinary
Officer Hearing, referral to SRO,
possible recommendation for
expulsion
ASSAULT/FIGHTING
Fighting
Behavior that endangers the
safety of others/leading to
confrontational behavior
Verbal altercations
Unwanted pushing and shoving
Incitement and harassment
Horseplay
BULLYING
1st Offense – 3-10 days OSS,
referral to SRO, meeting with
administrator before
returning to FMS
Subsequent Offenses –10 days
OSS, referral to hearing officer
with possible recommendation
for expulsion, referral to SRO
May warrant immediate
suspension. Referral to SRO.
CHEATING/INTEGRITY
1st Offense – A zero on the work
2nd Offense –A zero on the work
and 2 days ALC
CHEMICAL/SUBSTANCE
ABUSE
See HCPS Code of Student
Conduct
DANGEROUS OBJECTS AND
FIREARMS
See HCPS Code of Student
Conduct
DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR
Disrespect
Disobedience
Cursing
Using inappropriate language
or symbols (verbally or in
writing)
– may result in OSS
Not in assigned area
Tardy to class – 5 or more
minutes
late
TARDIES TO CLASS
1st Offense – 2 days of ALC
2nd Offense –3 days of ALC
3rd Offense – 3 days OSS
Note: Each incident will be
judged on a case-by-case basis
and appropriate action taken by
administration may result in
immediate suspension.
TARDIES TO SCHOOL
Monitored by the attendance
secretary, unexcused tardiness to
school may necessitate a referral
to the school social worker and
law enforcement agency.
1st Offense – Warning by
teacher
2nd Offense – Call home from
teacher
3rd Offense – Teacher detention
4th Offense – 2 days of ALC
TECHNOLOGY
Inappropriate computer usage
Based on infraction, the
administration will assign the
following: ALC, OSS, referral to
SRO, confiscation of computer
THEFT
1st Offense – 3 days ALC plus
restitution, referral to SRO
Subsequent: 3 days OSS,
restitution, referral to SRO
Note: In all cases of theft,
restitution or the return of the
item will be made. Notification to
the SRO may be made. Each
incident will be judged on a
case-by-case basis and
appropriate action taken
by administration may result
in immediate suspension.
TOBACCO PRODUCTS
1st Offense – 3 days ALC,
referral
to SRO
2nd Offense – Minimum 2 days
OSS, referral to SRO
TRESPASSING
1st Offense – Warning, referral
to
SRO, trespassing letter
2nd Offense – Referral to SRO
1st Offense – 3-10 days OSS,
meeting with principal or
designee
before returning to FMS
Subsequent Offenses – To be
determined by administration
/possible suspension to
Disciplinary Review Hearing
Officer
VANDALISM
Vandalizing/defacing/destroying
school property (including buses
and permanent graffiti)
Note: In all cases, the offending
student shall be held financially
responsible for the repair or
replacement of school property.
Notification will be made to the
SRO.
HABITUAL OFFENDER
Category given to students who
continue to disrupt the learning
environment. Students who fall
into this category will be
suspended to the Disciplinary
Review Hearing Officer.
INSUBORDINATION
Removal of "zipstrip"
Refusing to give name to staff
member
Refusing to comply with any
request by a staff member
1st Offense – 1 days OSS
2nd Offense – 3 days OSS
ALC- Alternative Learning
Center
OSS – Out of School Suspension
BULLYING
Everyone at FMS is committed to making our school a safe and nurturing
environment for all students. Here, we treat each other with respect, and we
refuse to tolerate bullying in any form. Bullying is defined as intentional,
repeated hurtful acts, words or other behavior, such as name-calling,
threatening and/or shunning committed by one or more children against
another. These negative acts are not intentionally provoked by the victims, and for such acts to
be defined as bullying, an imbalance in real or perceived power
must exist between the bully and the victim.
Examples of bullying include:
• Hurting someone physically by hitting, kicking, tripping, pushing, and so on
• Stealing or damaging another’s personal property
• Ganging up on someone
• Teasing someone in a hurtful manner
• Using put-downs, such as insulting someone’s race or making fun of
someone for being like a boy or like a girl
• Spreading hurtful rumors about someone
• Leaving someone out on purpose or trying to get other kids not to play
with someone.
Staff at our school will do the following things to prevent bullying and to help
children feel safe at school:
• Closely supervise students in all areas of the school environment
• Watch for signs of bullying and stop it when it happens
• Respond quickly and sensitively to bullying reports
• Take seriously parents concerns about bullying/Investigate all reported bullying incidents
• Assign consequences for bullying based on the Code of Student Conduct
• Assign immediate consequences for retaliation against students who
report bullying
Students at our school will do the following things to prevent bullying:
• Treat each other respectfully
• Refuse to bully others; refuse to let others be bullied
• Refuse to watch, laugh, or join in when someone is being bullied
• Try to include everyone in activities, especially those who are often left out
• Report bullying to an adult
DISCIPLINE
We believe that all students have the ability to demonstrate positive
behavior on a daily basis. Expectations for student behavior are based on
the Henrico County Public Schools’ Code of Student Conduct, which every
student receives at the beginning of the year or when he/she enrolls. The
most important rule at FMS is that students show respect for self, other students,
teachers, administrators, and other adults. Breaking this rule will result in
an immediate disciplinary consequence.
If a student is unable to monitor his/her own behavior and remain in
compliance with school rules, a teacher and/or an administrator will address the
student. When a student fails to respond to teacher efforts to address and
correct behavior, he/she will be referred to a school administrator for
disciplinary action. Prior to issuing any disciplinary consequence, the principal
or assistant principal will meet with the student to discuss the violation. The
student will be given the opportunity to respond. Disciplinary action may include a student being
assigned detention, in- or out-of school suspension, or
being recommended for long-term suspension or expulsion, depending upon the
severity of a single infraction or the accumulation of multiple infractions.
TIMEOUT
Timeout is assigned when a student continues to disrupt the classroom-learning
environment despite redirection. Timeout is designed so that a student has an
opportunity to redirect his or her own behavior and return to the classroom
environment after a duration of time specified by the teacher or at the start of
the next class. The teacher who assigned the Timeout will contact the parent to
explain the behaviors of the student. Three Timeouts during the school year
will result in an assignment to ALC for two days. Each set of three Timeouts
will result in an increased number of days in ALC and/or may lead to an out-of-school
suspension at the discretion of the administration.