GAINESVILLE - A 16-year-old North Hall High School student will apparently be out of school longer than expected after the Hall County school board extended the suspension he had been given.
The youngster, facing battery charges in juvenile court in connection with an alleged attack on a fellow student, had been suspended for the rest of this semester by a school system tribunal.
However, his parents appealed the suspension to the school board. But, schools superintendent Dennis Fordham said Wednesday the board took harsher action - suspending the student for the rest of this semester and all of next semester.
The incident, which occurred early last month, followed an earlier confrontation between the two high schoolers, according to officials at North Hall.
School officials say it took place outside an assistant principal's, one day after a confrontation between the two in the lunchroom.
They say a lunchroom worker overhead the alleged attacker, who is white, use a racial slur in telling the other student, who is black, to get off his shoe.
The student who was attacked received several stitches for a cut near one of his eyes.
"The minutes will reflect that the board heard the appeal and voted to uphold the disciplinary panel's decision regarding guilt of assault and battery," Dr. Fordham said. "He will be suspended for the remainder of the semester and all of next semester (a tougher acton that the tribunal had recommended)."
Dr. Fordham said that is the action originally recommended by the North Hall principal. However, the tribunal had reduced that to just the remainder of the current semester.
"The board also concurred with the (tribunal) that he will be allowed to attend the alternative school."
Monday
October 21st, 2024
7:40AM
