Do Schools Have the Right to Take My Child’s Belongings?

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Some schools seem to be adopting more rigid rules for the safety of the employees, students, and volunteers. Still, there is a super vague line that they must cross when considering the students’ privacy.

Schools may search and retrieve student items if they decide they go against school policies or are considered stolen property. Students may request the dismissal of a search if they feel there is no evidence of a stolen item.

Schools may search your child without their consent, but for safety reasons only. This post will delve into why schools search through students’ stuff and the reasons schools put these policies into place.

Can Schools Search Children Without Permission?

There are a couple of things to note here:

Teachers must have reason to believe a student has a prohibited or stolen item.
The search must be reasonable and appropriate for the child.
Students should request dismissal if they (the student) believe there is no evidence.

Teachers search students if they have any reason to believe they may have a banned item or other determining reasons for the search. It is up to the teacher or school staff to decide whether an investigation is necessary to dispose of, relocate, or confiscate an item.

If the school thinks that there may be a reason to search a student, they will likely ask first, and then if no consent is given, they may still proceed to explore the student’s items, locker, desk, etc.

School property is searched without student or parental consent, and administration gives the police force the option to search after determining the necessary retrieval of an item. Stolen property is obtained from the student and is considered for search without the student’s consent.

In some states, the students have the right to be freed from a search if the search is unreasonable, has no grounds, or is an invasion of privacy.

If students believe they have no stolen items or evidence of dangerous or suspicious behaviors, they must request to be freed from the search. Students must respect that the teachers are required to search and can also politely ask to leave if there are no stolen items or materials that suggest unsafe behaviors.

Are Schools Allowed to Take Children’s Belongings?

Schools are permitted to take personal belongings if they violate policies.
Confiscated items are searched when teachers believe the contents violate guidelines.
Personal items are free from search when teachers do not think they are evidence of suspicious behaviors.

School Policy

Generally speaking, schools may not take students’ personal belongings unless they are prohibited or stolen. Schools have policies that determine the appropriateness of certain materials at school. In the case of cell phones, if the school policy determines the absence of the phone is essential for learning, the school has the right to confiscate the device until the student’s departure.

School employees generally have reason to think that a student has school property or has broken a school rule before searching a child’s stuff. Any school property that is considered stolen may be retrieved from a student without the student’s consent to search their belongings.

Student Privacy

Personal items –bags, purses, phones, duffles– are permitted to be searched if there is reason to think the contents have violated school policy. If the school or teacher determines that a search is necessary to find evidence of behaviors that go against school policy, they will take the item and search the contents.

Schools may not look into the contents, read messages, or obtain data from the personal phone unless it is to obtain information about a prohibited property or to gain proof of suspicious behaviors or dangerous activities that may harm the staff or students.

Stealing in Schools

Children steal from schools because their developing brain lacks control but craves risk-taking behaviors. Many teens experience this pattern in the pre-adolescent stage and into their teen years because their brain is growing the pre-frontal cortex that is in charge of assessing dangerous behaviors.

Causes of Theft

Students steal from school because they are unhappy with the environment or do not feel valued or heard by their peers, teachers, or the administration. Stealing is a way to get back at them for not listening or rejecting an idea. Some believe that people steal due to “hatred, ignorance, and greed.”

Theft could be a product of peer pressure at school. Children likely want to impress other mates and make an impression. Stealing is a way for kids to gain attention in class and distract the class from learning.

Significant issues like poverty, hunger, and behavioral problems may determine behaviors and patterns at school. Children without access to certain materials might take them from school if required for an assignment. If a student’s family situation requires stealing to retrieve other things like drugs, alcohol, or money, a student will steal from school because of unhealthy patterns at home.

Consequences for Stealing

Stealing in school creates an environment where teachers, staff, and administration must create boundaries and rules for the safety of all people in the building. If teachers believe a student is stealing or suspicious, they have the right to search the contents of their locker, bags, duffels, purses, phones, and other personal items.

Students might be suspended from school, withdrawn from activities, or criminally charged. Depending on the severity of the situation, stealing may result in fines, prison, loss of student rights, and retrieval of stolen items.

Stealing Interventions

Parents must help their children with positive communication. If your child steals infrequently, it may be developmental and will probably pass with time or proper communication. If stealing is frequent, consider more professional help in therapy or counseling.

Parents

Please talk with your child about why they are stealing and find solutions to their problems. Adults should look at the situation objectively and try to find ways to be there for their children while experiencing this behavior.

Find ways to resolve an issue if they require restitution or possibly make it an opportunity to engage in an ignored conversation. Evaluate your values, morals, and ethics, and consider how your behaviors have led to this point.

Schools

Teachers and administration may use theft to introduce new themes into the school curriculum. They may provide assemblies to communicate new theft strategies and propose additional policies. Schools might consider using theft as a way to promote supplemental community action plans, so students learn to value community involvement.

It is common to see teachers take away student privileges and refer to more legal options for additional help. Some schools may require additional rules and student transparency during arrival to assess the contents of their bags. Other law enforcement is expected in upper-level schools to detain dishonest students.

Keep Your Stuff Safe at School

There are ways for students to keep their stuff out of the way, given it is their stuff and they are not dangerous items, so they are unharmed. Kids should use lockers and locks to protect their valuables, and older teens should use their cars.

Keep unnecessary tools and items at home when you can!
Cover items in a car by using the trunk and dashboard compartments.
Roll up windows and close the car trunk to ensure the safety of your belongings.
Lock your car doors and use proper lock tools for school lockers.
Consider the placement of your car, locker, and personal items.
Keep lockers close to your classes or a departure area.
Try to park somewhere visible to see the car during school.
Call your parents if you need an expensive item picked up from school.
Ask a school teacher to store valuables in an office for pick up.

Conclusion

Teachers can take items from children if they think they go against school policies or are evidence of suspicious behaviors. Students are encouraged to speak up if they are unfairly searched to request dismissal. School employees must believe that the student has a stolen or dangerous item before searching the student. Students can maintain privacy by keeping expensive or personal things at home, in lockers, or in a locked car.