SJB School | Student Handbook | Discipline Policy

Discipline Policy

It is the responsibility of St. John the Baptist Catholic School to provide educational opportunities for our students and to equip them with the skills, understandings, appreciation, and attitudes necessary for living effectively in our society. It is the student’s responsibility, as a citizen of this Christian community, to make our school a place where people can learn and grow together with dignity and respect for one another.

The purpose of discipline is to provide an atmosphere conducive to learning. Discipline is an aspect of moral guidance and not a form of punishment. The purpose of discipline is four-fold:

To provide a classroom and school environment conducive to learning
To help students develop a sense of responsibility and self-control
To foster our values as a Catholic, Christian community
To nurture the formation of conscience

It is our intent to maintain the dignity of the student in the process of disciplining. Generally, when teachers and students mutually identify classroom standards, and post for all to see, students are most helpful in maintaining a positive, cooperative climate in the classroom and other places throughout the school. If a student does act out, he/she will be talked to and/or given an appropriate consequence. If efforts to improve behavior are not heeded, parents will be called for a conference with teachers and student. We rely on, and believe in the good will of our students to treat each other with respect, to reverence the property and goods given to them, and to desire to become the best one can be. Children want to do the right thing…most of the time! In the event a student makes poor choices, unacceptable to a teacher, the administration and/or our school policies and standards, he/she may incur a consequence more serious than a “talking to” or any other typically used response to minor inappropriate behavior.

Participation in a Catholic school is a privilege, not a right. Students must accept responsibility for their actions, and work to uphold the standards, policies, rules, and spirit the school promotes. The faculty will work to encourage and inspire a student to become their best selves, including positive follow-up with a student after he/she has incurred a consequence. It is our hope that every student cooperate in the social milieu which encompasses the Catholic school.

The primary responsibility for developing self-discipline, responsibility, and respect for other people rests with the home. Children who have developed these qualities will usually progress well in school. The school is concerned with the development of attitudes, habits, and behavior, and provides a proper climate for learning. Therefore, the school (faculty and staff) reasonably expects the following behaviors of our students;