BCPS Code of Conduct and Disciplinary Response

The Code of Conduct lays out expectations for the positive management of student behavior and the responses when a student acts inappropriately or causes harm.

When the atmosphere and "feel" of a school are positive, that school becomes a place that students, staff, families, and community members want to be — and where teaching and learning can thrive. All members of a school community have a role to play in creating that kind of atmosphere in a school, and all should have shared expectations about positive behavior.

The Baltimore City Public Schools Code of Conduct was written in accordance with the policies of the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners, CEO administrative regulations, and Maryland law and regulations, with input from members of the City Schools community.

It includes definitions of disciplinary responses, student and parent rights with respect to suspensions, and descriptions of levels of intervention and response to inappropriate or disruptive behavior. Disciplinary responses focus on promoting positive relationships, restorative practices, intervention strategies, and the use of suspensions only as a disciplinary measure of last resort.