D.C. school administrators are in the middle of revamping how the school system handles student discipline, but changes being planned have so far been kept secret and won't be publicized until the summer.

Nicole Streeter, deputy general counsel for the school district, acknowledged that her office has been working for some time on retooling not just the way in which students are suspended but also an entire municipal code section that governs teacher licensing, educational requirements for handicapped students and other issues.

Yet neither Streeter nor representatives from the chancellor's office would reveal the specific proposals.

According to parents who have weighed in on the plans, one of the most significant changes is an emphasis on in-school suspensions for misbehaving students rather than suspensions where students are left to their own devices at home.

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Currently, D.C. schools have only two levels of infractions for discipline problems. Level-one infractions include damaging school property and trespassing, while level-two infractions range from committing violent acts on school grounds to possessing a weapon.

What's being discussed is the addition of two extra categories of infractions and discipline, the sources told The Examiner.

Taking that approach would likely result in fewer or shorter suspensions and instead subject students to less harsh forms of punishment and give them more time to correct their behavior.

Concern is building about the level of input that the public will get in deciding whether this tactic will work in the District.

Nathan Saunders, vice president of the Washington Teachers Union, told The Examiner that teachers - who would be highly impacted by the change - have not yet been consulted on the handling of student discipline, which troubles him greatly.

"There should be a great deal of public input on that," he said. "especially from teachers. There are a lot of practical issues that they'd have to work through."

Streeter countered that the revisions will be published in the D.C. Register and then vetted during public meetings. The vetting process, however, will occur during the summer months so that the new code can be in place at the start of the school year.

According to officials, D.C. Council members also have to approve the modifications.

dlevitz@dcexaminer.com