Kentucky — school discipline

Governing authority stated in the sources

Kentucky Revised Statutes 158.150, "Suspension or expulsion of students -- Alternative program or other intervention -- Removal from classroom -- Return of expelled student to school district", together with KRS 158.155 on reporting specified incidents of student conduct. Neither served document prints a revision or effective date, and that absence is recorded here rather than filled. — KRS 158.150, retrieved Aug 30, 2026

The lines the state draws

Kentucky states no maximum suspension length in these sources; what it states is a floor for one category of expulsion. "Each local board of education shall adopt a policy requiring the expulsion from school for a period of at least twelve (12) months for a student who:" is determined by the board through clear and convincing evidence "to have made threats that pose a danger to the well-being of students, faculty, or staff of the district;", or is determined "to have brought a weapon to a school under its jurisdiction", or, in grades six through twelve, "to have recklessly, with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, or intentionally caused or attempted to cause physical injury to a school district employee on school property or at a school function under the board's jurisdiction." (KRS 158.150(2)(a)) An expulsion does not simply run out: "Within thirty (30) days prior to the end of a student's expulsion, the board shall review the details of the expulsion and current factors and circumstances, including if ending the expulsion will substantially disrupt the education process or constitute a threat to the safety of students or school staff, to determine if the expulsion shall be extended for a period not to exceed twelve (12) months." That review repeats: "The expulsion review process shall be used prior to the end of each expulsion period until the board ends the expulsion or the student is no longer subject to compulsory attendance under KRS 159.010." (KRS 158.150(7)(b)) No short-term versus long-term suspension threshold appears in the sources reviewed; that absence is the finding.

Offices and appeal bodies in these sources

Suspension belongs to school officers with an immediate reporting duty: "The superintendent, principal, assistant principal, or head teacher of any school may suspend a student but shall report the action in writing immediately to the superintendent and to the parent, guardian, or other person having legal custody or control of the student." (KRS 158.150(7)(a)) Expulsion belongs to the board, and the statute states both the hearing and the finality: the board "may expel or extend the expulsion of any student for misconduct as described in subsection (1) of this section, but the action shall not be taken until the parent, guardian, or other person having legal custody or control of the student has had an opportunity to have a hearing before the board. The decision of the board shall be final." (KRS 158.150(7)(b)(1)) Placement into an alternative program carries its own hearing right, before the board or a body the board may create: the action "shall not be taken until the parent, guardian, or other person having legal custody or control of the student has had an opportunity to have a hearing before the board or an appeals committee as described in subparagraph 2. of this paragraph.", and "The board may adopt a policy to establish an appeals committee and delegate the authority to hear appeals made under this paragraph to that committee." (KRS 158.150(2)(d))
No state office, phone number, or email for parents appears in the sources; that absence is the finding.

Sources last checked

Aug 30, 2026

Reproduced from the state's own statutes quoted below: potentially relevant official sources, not a determination of which one governs any situation.

This page assembles what Kentucky publishes in statute about K-12 school discipline. This is a baseline docket page: the governing sections, the lines the state draws, and the decision-makers and hearing rights, quoted with dates. The full sections (the framework route by route, the four hoisted process rows, every stated timeline, the district delegation map, and records access) follow as the discipline layer deepens behind its breadth sprint; the change log states exactly what is not yet captured. The due process owed before a suspension is stated as a numbered list and then given a deadline for the case where it cannot come first: "A student shall not be suspended from the common schools until after at least the following due process procedures have been provided:" "The student has been given oral or written notice of the charge or charges against him or her which constitute cause for suspension;" "The student has been given an explanation of the evidence of the charge or charges if the student denies them; and" "The student has been given an opportunity to present his or her own version of the facts relating to the charge or charges." Then: "These due process procedures shall precede any suspension from the common schools unless immediate suspension is essential to protect persons or property or to avoid disruption of the ongoing academic process. In such cases, the due process procedures outlined above shall follow the suspension as soon as practicable, but no later than three (3) school days after the suspension." (KRS 158.150(6)) An expelled student is barred from more than classes: "An expelled student shall not participate in any school-sponsored extracurricular or interscholastic activity of the district while the student is expelled." (KRS 158.150(2)(c)) A student removed from a classroom is placed rather than sent home, and the principal decides where: the placement "may include but is not limited to:" "Another classroom in that school; or" "An alternative program or setting, which may be provided virtually, as approved by the superintendent;". Any permanent removal "shall be subject to an appeal process in accordance with a policy adopted by the board", and the classroom-removal policies "shall be included in the code of behavior and discipline adopted by the board of education under KRS 158.148 and the policies adopted by the school council under KRS 160.345." (KRS 158.150(5)) That code of behavior and discipline, which the statute names but does not write, is the delegation that will anchor the full page's delegation map. For a student with an IEP or Section 504 plan, the disability layer lives on this site's Kentucky special education page; the statute carries its own subsection on exceptional children, opening "Suspension of exceptional children, as defined in KRS 157.200, shall be considered a change of educational placement if:". (KRS 158.150(8)(a)) Confirm applicability with the district and the agencies. All dates on this page are quoted from the sources, not a deadline calculation performed for you.