South Dakota — school discipline

Governing authority stated in the sources

South Dakota Codified Laws Chapter 13-32 (supervision of students and conduct of school), principally 13-32-4 (school board discipline authority) and 13-32-4.2 (suspension procedure and appeal), together with Administrative Rules of South Dakota 24:07:04 (expulsion procedure) and 24:07:02 (short-term suspension procedure), both adopted under SDCL 13-32-4 and 13-1-12.1. — SDCL Chapter 13-32, retrieved Sep 1, 2026

The lines the state draws

The statute sets two administrator ceilings and leaves the board's own ceiling unstated: "The school board in any district may authorize the summary suspension of pupils by principals of schools for not more than ten school days and by the superintendent of schools for not more than ninety school days." (13-32-4.2) Expulsion has no stated numerical cap in the ordinary case — "The period of expulsion may extend beyond the semester in which the violation, insubordination, or misconduct occurred" — but two categories carry their own limits: "Any expulsion for consumption or possession of beer or alcoholic beverages may not extend beyond ninety school days." and "If a student has intentionally brought a firearm onto school premises, the expulsion may not be for less than twelve months." The firearm floor is a floor a district officer can adjust: "the superintendent or chief administering officer of each local school district or system may increase or decrease the length of a firearm-related expulsion on a case-by-case basis." (13-32-4) The rule confines an immediate exclusion to notice-first process: "the principal or superintendent shall give oral or written notice to the pupil as soon as possible after discovery of the alleged violation," and a minor "may not be removed from the school premises before the end of the school day without contacting a parent unless the pupil's presence poses a continuing threat or danger, in which case the pupil may be immediately removed from the school and transferred into the custody of a parent or law enforcement." (ARSD 24:07:02:01)

Offices and appeal bodies in these sources

The board is the decision-maker for anything beyond a short suspension, and appeal runs to it directly, then to the courts. On suspension: "In case of a suspension by the superintendent for more than ten school days, the pupil or his parents or others having his custodial care may appeal the decision of the superintendent to the board of education." And on that appeal: "the board, upon request, shall grant a hearing to the appealing party." (13-32-4.2) On expulsion, the rule assigns the school board as the hearing body itself: "The school board is the hearing board and shall conduct the hearing in the following manner:" appointing "a school board member or a person who is not an employee of the school district as the hearing officer;" (ARSD 24:07:04:04) From there: "The student may appeal an adverse decision by the school board to the circuit court." (ARSD 24:07:04:05)
No state office, phone number, or email for parents appears in the sources; that absence is the finding.

Sources last checked

Sep 1, 2026

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

This page assembles what South Dakota publishes in statute and administrative rule about K-12 school discipline. This is a baseline docket page: the governing provisions, the lines the state draws, and the decision-makers and appeal route, 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. Before an expulsion hearing the rule requires a sealed report: "the superintendent must file a sealed written report with the school board no later than the end of the fifth school day following the first day of the student's removal from one or more classes or from school and schedule a hearing before the school board." That report "must remain in the possession of the school board secretary sealed and unavailable for review by individual school board members, until the time set for a hearing." (ARSD 24:07:04:01) The required notice is detailed: it "must contain the following information at a minimum:" including "Notice of the right to request a hearing;" "A statement that the student may present witnesses; and" a statement that the student may be represented by an attorney. (ARSD 24:07:04:02) A hearing can be waived: "The student, if of the age of majority or emancipated, or the student's parent may waive the right to a hearing in writing to the superintendent." (ARSD 24:07:04:03) The statute assigns the underlying rules and policies to the district board, subject to a specific list of permitted prohibitions: "The board may suspend or expel from school any student for violation of rules or policies or for insubordination or misconduct, and the superintendent or principal in charge of the school may temporarily suspend any student in accordance with § 13-32-4.2." The board's "rules or policies may include prohibiting" alcohol, unprescribed controlled substances, and firearms as listed in 13-32-7. (13-32-4) That delegation will anchor the full page's delegation map. The rule also names where the disability layer intervenes: "If a student identified as in need of special education or special education and related services pursuant to SDCL 13-37-1 is the subject of proposed expulsion, the procedure in § 24:06:26.01:08 applies." (ARSD 24:07:04:07) For a student with an IEP or Section 504 plan, that layer lives on this site's South Dakota special education page. District codes of conduct add procedural detail this page does not carry. 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.