Discipline Philosophy

The words "discipline" and "disciple" derive from the Latin word "discipulus", meaning pupil, learner, or disciple. The administration and faculty at ECCS desire to complement the parents' role in disciplining their children to live God-honoring lives.

Webster defines discipline as "to train or develop by instruction and exercise especially in self-control" and as "training that corrects, molds, or perfects the mental faculties or moral character." We believe that it is possible, right, and essential to define and teach what acceptable and unacceptable behavior is in practical ways that govern and affect our daily lives.

Jesus' words in Matthew 22:37-40 provide a foundation for discipline at ECCS. He summed up the Ten Commandments in two commandments: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. . . And. . . You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." We believe that the love of which Jesus speaks calls us as individuals and as a school to teach children to love and honor God and to love and honor all of His creation.

 Our goal at ECCS is to teach children to discern right from wrong and to practice self-control in ways that honor God. The entire curriculum will strive to reveal our holy, righteous, and gracious God in ways that endear the children to their heavenly Father so that they will accept His correction just as children who love and honor their earthly father accept his correction. Teaching self-control will include, though not be limited to, encouraging children to learn biblical ways to talk to one another, to play with one another, to support and encourage one another, to handle disagreements, to receive correction, and to express emotions. Additionally, we are eager for children to learn responsibility regarding their own and others' possessions and toward nature as they fulfill God's creation mandate to subdue and have dominion over the earth.

We believe all that occurs at ECCS is a form of discipline/training, and we desire to encourage and affirm the children in their progress in developing godly character. Love, forgiveness, firmness and fairness will be integral to student discipline. The remainder of this document details the necessary consequences of inappropriate behavior, also an important part of training for godliness.

 Discipline Policy

A.  Problem Behavior: Response to a student's problem behavior, in kind and amount, will be determined by his/her teacher and, if necessary, the principal. These applications of discipline will be based on biblical principles, e.g. restitution, apologies (public and private), swift/painful chastisement, restoration of fellowship and dealing with inappropriate lingering attitudes. The vast majority of these problems will be dealt with at the classroom level. To maintain consistency, teachers will meet regularly to discuss biblical standards and school policy concerning these aspects of discipline.

 B.  Office Visits: There are five basic behaviors that will automatically necessitate attention from the principal:
1.  Disrespect shown to any staff member as determined by the staff member.
2. Dishonesty in any situation while at school, including lying, cheating, and stealing.
3. Rebellion - outright disobedience in response to instructions.
4. Fighting - striking in anger with the intent to harm another.
5. Obscene, vulgar, or profane language.

The principal may require restitution, janitorial work, parental attendance during the school day with their child, spanking, or other appropriate measures. If corporal punishment is deemed necessary, the principal will call the parents into the office to administer the punishment to their child. However, the principal reserves the right to administer corporal punishment without the parent’s attendance.

If a student receives discipline from the principal for any reason, the following accounting will be observed within either semester of the school year:
a. The first two times a student is sent to the principal for discipline his/her parents will be contacted and apprised of the details of the visit. The principal will seek the parents' assistance and support in averting further problems.
b. The third office visit will be followed by a meeting of the student's parents and the principal.
c. Should the student require a fourth office visit the student will be suspended for two days.
d. If a fifth office visit is required the student will be expelled.

C.        Expulsion: The ECCS Board realizes that expelling a student is a very serious matter and should always be carefully pursued on a case-by-case basis. Forgiveness and restoration are fundamental to our overall discipline policy. However, should a student and his parents be unable to eliminate behavior problems before a fifth office visit is required, the student will be expelled. 

D.        Re-Admittance: Should the expelled student desire re-admittance to ECCS the following year, THE BOARD will make a decision based on, but not limited to, the circumstances surrounding the expulsion, the student's current attitude as relates to the reason for expulsion and the circumstances at the time of re-application.

E.         Serious Misconduct: Should a student commit an act with serious consequences the principal may by-pass the office-visit procedure and suspend or expel the student immediately. Examples of such serious misconduct include, but are not limited to, acts of endangering the lives of students or staff members, gross violence, vandalism to school facilities, or violations of civil or criminal law. Students may be subject to school discipline for serious misconduct which occurs outside school hours and suspected violations of the law will be reported to the authorities.

F.         Proper Conduct: In accordance with ECCS policies proper conduct is expected of all students during the school day and school-sponsored field trips or events.