Removal Right Letters
A closed school office door with a sealed envelope on the floor outside it
An example. The people and details are invented.

A threat, and the office sent him back

Mr. Alvarez teaches eighth-grade science. When he told a student to put his phone away, the student stood up and said, in front of the class, "Wait till you're in the parking lot. I know which car is yours."

Mr. Alvarez wrote an office referral and asked the assistant principal to keep the student out of his room. An hour later the student was back, with a reflection sheet. "He's just mouthing off," the assistant principal said.

That weekend, Mr. Alvarez started reading about how to resign mid-year.

What went wrong

He sent a referral and asked. An office referral is the part of the law where the student comes back the same day (§37.002(a)). A formal removal is a different part, and it's the teacher's decision: "a teacher may remove from class a student" who is "unruly, disruptive, or abusive toward the teacher" (§37.002(b)(2)). A request gave the office something to say no to. A written removal notice would have given it a deadline instead.

“A teacher shall remove from class and send to the principal ... a student who engages in conduct described under Section 37.006 or 37.007.”

Texas Education Code §37.002(d)

A threat like this one may go further. Conduct that contains the elements of a terroristic threat involving a school, or harassment of any school employee, is on the list where removal isn't a choice (§37.006(a)(1), (b)). Whether it legally counts is for the school to decide. Saying in writing that it may count is his part.

What he could have done instead

  1. Remove him in writing, that dayA dated email saying he was removing the student under Section 37.002, that the conduct may be a removal the law requires, and that he did not consent to the student's return.
  2. Ask for a threat assessmentEvery campus must have a team that assesses threats of violence (Section 37.115). A written request starts it.
  3. Hold the line on the returnThe student couldn't come back before the conference (Section 37.009(a)), and not after it without his written consent or the committee, the conference, and a written plan (Section 37.002(c)).
  4. Go over the campus if it's ignoredA written report to the superintendent, then a grievance, then a complaint to the state. His job is protected for a good-faith removal and for reporting a violation (Section 22.05121).

Before he resigns

Leaving mid-year without the district's consent can lead to a complaint to the State Board for Educator Certification, and the usual minimum is a one-year suspension of his certificate. But the board must weigh his reasons. Its rules count resigning because of "working conditions that reasonably posed an immediate threat of significant physical harm to the educator" as a mitigating factor, and a documented health condition as good cause. Those reasons can be enough for the board to take no action at all (19 TAC §249.17(d)).

The safer path is to use the law first, and if he still wants to leave, to ask the district in writing to release him from his contract.

If your school ignores the law: every step, in order

Does this sound like your room?

If your school ignores the lawWhat to do, step by step, and how to protect your job and your certificate.
Write your required-removal noticeFill in what happened. The notice, and a request for a threat assessment, are written for you.

Other situations: every day, again · one thing crossed a line · a student is being bullied

The whole process, start to finish

New here? Start at the beginning
  1. 1Know your rightThe law gives the decision to you.
  2. 2Check that it fitsThree reasons. One incident can be enough.
  3. 3Keep a recordOne incident, one page. Print or save each one.
  4. 4Give written noticeYou notify your principal. You don't ask.You are here
  5. 5The conferenceScheduled by the third class day. The student stays out until then.
  6. 6Your decision on the returnYour written consent, or the law's steps without it.

If your school ignores the law · Write your letters · Print the workbook · Something wrong on this page? Tell us

This site is general information, not legal advice, and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. For your own situation, talk to a licensed Texas attorney.