<p>The common app is a relatively new form. The question asks about disciplinary actions in school, so that’s where the debate comes in about how to answer it.</p>
<p>The person(s) to ask about how to answer this question is the guidance counselor and the school administration. She should ask point blank - SHOULD I DISCLOSE THIS ON THE COMMON APP? Debate settled.</p>
<p>The problem that this girl faces is that guidance counselors carry quite a bit of weight in terms of letters of recommendation. If this girl does not deal with this the right way, the counselor may be less inclined to give her a good recommendation because unfortunately character does come into play. Sometimes the counselors have to fill out survey type forms about the student and their character. Do I think getting drunk at a prom means that her character is on the line? NO. And most likely, neither will the college. But if the counselor holds back on writing a good recommendation because the girl and her family are sweeping this under the rug, then the best course of action is for the girl to face this thing head on and build a very solid relationship with the counselor.</p>
<p>I also think there was a bit of pile on. Late to this thread…We (ourselves and D1) have received traffic violations which could have resulted in having points. We have all opted to pay additional fines to get those points removed. I think this is worse than seahorses scenario.</p>
<p>Interesting discussion. Makes me wonder if things that might cause an in school (or possibly even out of school) suspension like (just making this up) skipping class, tardiness, inappropriate behavior towards staff, dishonesty, substance use, etc would be handled by parents of homeschooled children. How would such infractions be handled? Would anything have to be reported on the common app? Would a homeschooled child be subject to a “suspension”? Just curious as to how this would be addressed.</p>
<p>Sticker, I am in the same situation. Daughter is an excellent student and made the same mistake, only it was the homecoming dance not prom. At first, I was as upset and worried as you. </p>
<p>Once you get a few months’ behind you, your initial panic and disappointment will fade a little. I could not even believe when the school called that it was my daughter they were calling about. I thought there must have been some kind of mistake. You do need to address it, but a little time will help put things into perspective. It is not the end of the world.</p>
<p>Our school sounds similar to yours as far as disciplinary actions. Two week suspension, not able to attend events, etc. Our GC says she deals with this on a regular basis, and it has not really an issue in the admissions process for other children before mine. If the other factors that make the kid a good fit for a school are all there, then they are likely still a good candidate for that school. Yes, it should be disclosed, but it is not necessarily a make or break moment. According to GC, many colleges see this as pretty normal high school behavior, and the grades, ECs, and whether or not there are any other issues, etc., are all taken into account. </p>
<p>Where this all falls with the financial aid picture, however, I do not know. I do not have any experience with that yet.</p>
<p>Not getting in to my personal ethical opinion on the disclosure, but, as we all know, there are ways to argue that just about anything does not meet the terms of the question. Yes, to many people, the question seems straightforward. I am, by training - no longer in practice, a lawyer, and this is how most practicing lawyers make their living - on the one hand this, on the other that.</p>
<p>To the OP, your D needs to find a way to justify (to herself), whatever decision she makes on the disclosure. </p>
<p>In my opinion, the issue of HS drunkenness, binge drinking, college student abuse of alcohol and drugs, etc. is the more important issue, and one which seems to get worse and worse not better. </p>
<p>OP, I hope you have no further drinking issues with your kid.</p>
<p>jym626 - that’s why her character should not be called into question - we’ve all done stupid things and it is practically a “right of passage” in today’s HS/college world to binge drink. Unfortunately she did this on school property and the school has what she has done “on file” and for good reason. If this girl had been hurt or injured on school property from this incident, well then this would be a whole new topic.</p>
<p>If this has happened at the home of a homeschooled kid (say, drinking from the parents liquor cabinet), would this also be considered doing it on school porperty??</p>
<p>Homeschooled students are bound by the code of conduct set up by their own “home” school. If a homeschooled student was caught underage drinking at a public/private school event- the school could call the police to have them removed and face citation.</p>
<p>“If this has happened at the home of a homeschooled kid (say, drinking from the parents liquor cabinet), would this also be considered doing it on school porperty??”</p>
<p>As already noted, the Common Ap doesn’t ask if you drink (I think it should, but it doesn’t.) It asks whether the school took disciplinary action (likely of a more severe nature, beginning with probation. So unless a child was placed on probation, suspended, expelled, it’s a non-issue, just as it would at a school where no or just limited action was taken.</p>
<p>Would a homeschooled student ever be subject of similar “disciplinary action”, particularly if the event occurred at their home (school), even, say, during the course of their academic day when they were “in school”?</p>
<p>Again, you could ask the same of schools that don’t take disciplinary action of the type suggested by the question. Nothing special for homeschoolers here.</p>
<p>I’m not sure what you are asking. Are you asking whether homeschooled students are ever suspended or expelled? I doubt it. But then I know schools where students are never suspended or expelled. </p>
<p>In California, there are is no legal status for homsechoolers. What we think of as homeschooling is either done under the purview of the private school law, or through parent-partner programs connected to school districts.</p>
<p>Are you looking for consistency? As we are all know, there isn’t consistency across schools, or within the same school.</p>
<p>Has anyone ever heard of any homeschooler ever being the subject of disciplinary action like this if they violated some policy in their “home school”. Just wondering what the likelihood is of a parent doing this to their child.</p>
<p>This thread intrigued me enough to offer a similar hypothetical situation on a debate board I’m active on. (Of course, names changed to protect the innocent! It’s interesting how different the perspectives are when there’s not a “THAT kid might be taking MY kid’s seat at XYZ college” elephant in the room.</p>
<p>Not sure how those links about “school to prison” relate to the discussion here. The discussion was about a good kid who made a bad decision and got suspended. Since this was placed in their academic record, this places the student in the unfortunate position of having to report it on an app. My question had to do with the likelihood (or not) that in a different circumstance, such as, for example, with homeschooled students, that this never would have been placed in their academic file in the first place, so the student would never have to report it on the common app. Its just an ethical puzzle I am musing over.</p>
<p>**ETA the hypothetical ethical puzzle I am pondering has to do with whether in similar circumstances a parent of a homeschooler would ever put a disciplinary infration in their childs permanent academic record that they know could have negative consequences. The difference between failing to discipline the infraction vs failing to report it is part of my question. Easy to avoid having to be faced with being disengenuous on the common app if one never disciplines the behavior in the firstplace. And I suspect most parents(teachers) of homeschooled kids would be disinclined to mar their childs record in this way.</p>
<p>And, frankly, if any of you apply for a job which requires disclosure of ALL recent traffic citations, and you decide you “don’t really need” to disclose those violations, I would hope, when the truth comes out, that there would be consequences.</p>
<p>anothermom2 - Some legal training here, as well, and, as regards the circumstances presented here (by both the OP and seahorserock), the question posed on the Common App is quite straightforward. Is there the potential for ambiguity if the punishment were different, or the entity hosting the party were different? Perhaps, but that’s not the case here.</p>
<p>This would be an entirely different situation if reporting were optional . . . if, for example, the Common App asked if there were any disciplinary actions the student wanted to report. One could then have a very interesting discussion about the advantages/disadvantages of reporting. And it might be appropriate to ask the student’s guidance counselor for advice, or to “wait and see” what the school reports. But that’s not what the question asks. It’s a simple question. Answer it truthfully.</p>
<p>jym626 - If you’re curious about the issue of reporting with regard to homeschooled student, perhaps that topic would best be addressed in the homeschool forum. Consider that, in may cases, the parents of homeschooled students also decide what grades they’ll report for their kids. Lots of ethical conundrums here . . . but a bit off-topic for this thread.</p>
<p>Would a possible solution to this issue be to check out the individual applications for these schools and not use the common app? The common app is probably more comprehensive in what it covers, the school apps may not use that question.</p>
<p>Dodgersmom-
A large part of the discussion here has to do with the message parents give to their children, and the good, bad or otherwise of the ways parents choose to help their kids. Some have discussed the importanace of dealing in a straightforward way and learning from their mistakes. Others have talked about ways to try to expunge or otherwise “hide” the issue. I think its exteremely relevant to consider/discuss how a homeschooled parent might choose to address this same issue with their child.</p>
<p>“Not sure how those links about “school to prison” relate to the discussion here.”</p>
<p>The point being inconsistency in both discipline and reporting. Just as there may be inconsistencies between schools, or within a single school, or between schools and homeschools, or between homeschools, so certain people are more likely to be subjected to discipline than others. Imagine if you are in the “school to prison” pipeline how you will report to the Common Ap. </p>
<p>I think it fair to say that it is unlikely that a homeschooled student will be suspended or expelled, just as it is more likely that a non-white student will be suspended, expelled, and subject to criminal proceedings in school.</p>
<p>“My question had to do with the likelihood (or not) that in a different circumstance, such as, for example, with homeschooled students, that this never would have been placed in their academic file in the first place, so the student would never have to report it on the common app. Its just an ethical puzzle I am musing over.”</p>
<p>We all know that within the same school, students might be subject to different punishments (or might even escape punishment) for the same offense. Same in the criminal justice system. Life ain’t fair. But the Common Ap question is not a moral test; it asks a factual question.</p>
<p>I have never heard of a school that NEVER suspends or expels. I have never heard of a home schooled kid who was EVER suspended or expelled. Lots of ethical conundrums, yes, but there is a holier than thou attitude toward the OP’s choices that I find offensive.</p>
It’s interesting how different the perspectives are when there’s not a “THAT kid might be taking MY kid’s seat at XYZ college” elephant in the room.</p>