<p>so I made a really big mistake. I graduated a few weeks ago but recently went on a class trip. I broke curfew and was caught. My teacher is retracting the letter of rec from my college. Does anybody think that my acceptance or scholarships will be taken away? It’s a state school.</p>
<p>Have you already been accepted? </p>
<p>Please clarify: You went on a class trip after you had graduated? How can your teacher still be your teacher after graduation? </p>
<p>I would request a meeting with school administrators and the teacher and BEG him/her not to do that. It’s his/her prerogative, but if you take ful responsibility, she might have had time to simmer down. Keep in mind that teachers take the safety of students on field trips very seriously, and it’s a huge liability issue for the teacher personally if anything happens to one of them. But if they liked you well enough to write the recommendation in the first place, they may back of note that everyone is hone safe.</p>
<p>I was already accepted. Yes the trip was after graduation. Students from another school in my district were caught, and they want to keep the punishment the same amongst everybody. The principals are still deciding</p>
<p>This is ridiculous. The recommendation was sent already, and you have already graduated. What purpose does it serve to withdraw the recommendation at this time? In this case, the punishment does not make any sense. If it were to cause you to lose a scholarship, that would be beyond unacceptable, IMO. Can your parents talk with the principal?</p>
<p>Then the parents have to approach the principals together, and mention the word “lawsuit”. I hate to say it, but there it is. (I really do hate to say it, as a teacher, but if you were my child, I would do that and punish you myself.)</p>
<p>well a bunch of us were in a room watching movies together (boys & girls). my parents told my teacher that they would agree with any punishment given to me since they are very embarrassed. apparently they have nothing to hold over me, so my letter of rec is my punishment (?)</p>
<p>Keep in mind, especially in K-2, just because you graduate, you are still a student until the last day of school. IF Op graduated and went on a school trip and incident happened before the end of the school year, especially if teachers are working and it is a school sanctioned trip, OP still falls under the rules of the school. </p>
<p>The knife cuts both ways; when a parent signs a permission slip to send their child on a trip they abide by the rules and regulations that the school puts forth. As Sakar stated, when schools take students on a trip, especially and overnight trip, there is a huge liability to the school (where the parents would have not hesitated to threaten the school or perhaps even file a lawsuit had something happened to OP while s/he was under the school’s care).</p>
<p>Can a college retract scholarships? YES.</p>
<p>WILL your college retract YOUR scholarship…I guess it depends on the college policy regarding these things…and how this is actually presented to the college.</p>
<p>Is this in the US? I have trouble thinking this would be a problem in 99.9% of the cases in the US (boys and girls watching a movie).</p>
<p>Where were all the chaperones while this was going on? I’m not sure how wise it would be for teachers to send letters to college administrators admitting that the chaperones from your area high schools couldn’t keep track of their students. Your judgment isn’t the only one likely to come into question. </p>
<p>What you did was a bad idea, however, the punishment should fit the severity of the offense. What does your teacher hope to gain by withdrawing your letter of recommendation for a single mistake that can’t be undone? Would your parents really allow the district to do something that might result in the college rescinding your admission and/or financial aid just because they’re embarrassed? How embarrassed will they be if your acceptance is rescinded and you have to start the application process all over again? </p>
<p>If I were you, I’d encourage your parents to look on your school website for district policies regarding student discipline. Find out what steps the district can take. They may also want to look on your state website to find out what the state regs are. NYS, for instance, requires our districts to have a written policy that “(sets) forth prohibited student conduct” and includes the “range of penalties” for breaking them. It has to be publicized and given to the parents, in writing, every year. (NYS students can do a Google search for NYSED 100.2(L)(1)(i)(b) if they want to read the regulation.) I don’t condone what you did; it was foolish and could have ended really badly, but districts getting together to determine a collective punishment need to be careful they’re not violating either the policy of another district or your state. </p>
<p>I find it hard to believe that the school would do this, but I can see they feel backed into a corner with no punishment available. Perhaps the offenders should offer to do some community service work at the schools. Clean up or assisting teachers or something over the summer. </p>
<p>If this goes forward and they are going to retract. Write to the college yourself and tell them very briefly the infraction and express your regret on not complying with the rules. Ask if they need anything further from you. I can’t see them retracting unless there is some technical issue with no recommendation letter. I suppose this means that no one from your school can write you one or can they? </p>
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Yes the trip was after graduation. Students from another school in my district were caught, and they want to keep the punishment the same amongst everybody. The principals are still deciding</p>
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<p>@sybbie719 the trip was after graduation. the school is over-reaching. </p>
<p>well, the punishment is NOT the same for all caught because likely some are not attending schools that require LORs. If you were going to go to my kids’ undergrad and the school threatened that punishment, you could just laugh because that school (and many schools) do not require LORs.</p>
<p>frankly, I dont see your undergrad doing anything. If the teacher contacts them and says that the LOR is being retracted because of a curfew violation, the college would probably yawn…and then laugh as they tell others aftr hanging up the phone.</p>
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apparently they have nothing to hold over me, so my letter of rec is my punishment (?)</p>
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<p>I agree with the above…have your parents threaten the school for poorly chaperoning the group and threaten to go to the media and expose THEM. Have your parents tell them that since your parents now have nothing to hold over THEM for their behavior, your parents will expose their poor chaperoning on school-led trips.</p>
<p>This teacher sounds like a piece of work. I can’t believe that someone would even consider putting the financial end of someone’s future/education in jeopardy. In essence, that’s what she’s doing. </p>
<p>I can remember being a chaperone on several college trips & we chaperones would sit in the hallways to make sure the kids were where they were supposed to be. They were a bit younger than HS grads so we wanted to ensure their safety. I know of an organization that tapes hotel room doors when they take their students on college trips. Lol I think that’s a bit much…or maybe not. </p>
<p>Which college…? Ramapo, Drexel, Fordham, Stevens</p>
<p>You had committed to Ramapo but also had the others in the hopper too awaiting Buick Scholarship status.</p>
<p>My opinion…Fordham might be less forgiving than the others. </p>
<p>Um…were all of the students on this trip high school graduates? If some were rising seniors, the punishment for them is very different than for someone who has already graduated.</p>
<p>This story makes no sense to me. NONE.</p>
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<p>The principals are just as guilty. </p>
<p>Who would put someone’s aid and admission’s status in jeopardy over a curfew violation when y’all weren’t even really gone.</p>
<p>The room was full of hs grads. There was about 15 of us.</p>
<p>And they had no idea that there were 15 teenagers in a hotel room? Wow. Sounds like the teachers need to be reprimanded big time. It was THEIR responsibility to ensure your safety/whereabouts. What if there were drugs & alcohol? What if the teens decided to leave the hotel and hang out for the night? </p>
<p>Too many what ifs and as an adult who has been a chaperone in the past, I always wanted to make sure I took great care with others children. </p>
<p>If 15 hs grads were sitting in a hotel room watching TV (sans booze/drugs) past some arbitrary curfew, then this school should be thrilled that they didnt have a bunch of brats on their hands.</p>
<p>what idiots. </p>
<p>(why do I suspect that the admins in this scenario are women? hate to bash my own sex, but many female admin educators that I have met have been total non-thinkers. we could have replaced their tushes with their cherished rule books that they could never stray from.)</p>