people telling what a child does at school to others in the town and making up things

[Themm383]

Tennessee
My son has a hearing problem which causes him to get picked on. So he got into a couple pushing shoving fights at school. The school sent us to a discipline board. After the meeting someone on the board called several people and said it was worse and he was one step away from jail One of the people called was the pastor of our church. He was told how my son behaves at school in this persons mind. I was told that these meetings were confidential. This is causing us lots of problems What can we do?

 

[Just Blue]

Tennessee
My son has a hearing problem which causes him to get picked on. So he got into a couple pushing shoving fights at school. The school sent us to a discipline board. After the meeting someone on the board called several people and said it was worse and he was one step away from jail One of the people called was the pastor of our church. He was told how my son behaves at school in this persons mind. I was told that these meetings were confidential. This is causing us lots of problems What can we do?

Take you son to a therapist. And also to the Pastor.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

You should be having an IEP meeting to find out why the school is not addressing these issues, so the confrontations do not occur.

 

[quincy]

Tennessee
My son has a hearing problem which causes him to get picked on. So he got into a couple pushing shoving fights at school. The school sent us to a discipline board. After the meeting someone on the board called several people and said it was worse and he was one step away from jail One of the people called was the pastor of our church. He was told how my son behaves at school in this persons mind. I was told that these meetings were confidential. This is causing us lots of problems What can we do?

If what was said about the incidents was true, or substantially true, there has been no defamation. If confidentiality was promised, however, that should be addressed with the discipline board.

 

[I'mTheFather]

Actually, disclosing the results of a disciplinary hearing is a gross violation of FERPA. You can and should file a complaint here:

http://familypolicy.ed.gov/complaint-form

 

[quincy]

Actually, disclosing the results of a disciplinary hearing is a gross violation of FERPA. You can and should file a complaint here:

http://familypolicy.ed.gov/complaint-form

Good advice about the "can file a complaint" - but before it becomes a "should file a complaint" I would want Themm383 to make sure first that it was someone from the disciplinary board who spoke to others (and who the board member was) prior to filing a complaint. It is possible that nothing that was discussed in the meeting was disclosed to anyone outside the meeting.

Otherwise there could be a defamation claim to pursue - not by Themm383 but by any board member he might falsely accuse publicly (a qualified privilege would attach to the words in the complaint itself).

 

[I'mTheFather]

Fair 'nuff.

 

[quincy]

To go along with I'mTheFather's link for filing a complaint, here is a really good link from the Department of Education with a compilation of Tennessee's school discipline laws and regulations (school districts may have slight variations). There is a lot of information to read through but it covers thoroughly school disciplinary hearings:

https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/sites/default/files/discipline-compendium/Tennessee School Discipline Laws and Regulations.pdf