Teachers and parents' groups were last night assessing the implications of the High Court judgment which directed a school principal to re-admit a boy who smoked cannabis and provided it to other boys during a school trip.
Mr Gear≤id ╙ Ciarβin, principal of Colβiste Rβith∅n, Bray, Co Wicklow, was told by the High Court he "had no legal authority" to indefinitely suspend Leaving Cert student Mr David McKenna, who admitted to smoking cannabis, along with other boys, during a school trip to the Aran Islands last year. The judgment said this was a matter for the VEC.
Mr ╙ Ciarβin told The Irish Times last night that the judgment had implications for hundreds of schools because it meant principals would be afraid to take action against pupils in case this was not supported by their boards of management or VECs.
In this case the board of management initially supported Mr ╙ Ciarβin's decision to suspend Mr McKenna and four others. But this was later reversed. Co Wicklow VEC also upheld this decision.
Ms Marie Danaswamy, president of the National Parents' Council (post-primary), said the person most familiar with a pupil - the school principal - should have the power to suspend or expel and this should be supported by the VEC except in very exceptional circumstances.
The PRO of the council, Ms Barbara Johnson, declined to comment directly on the case, but said parents would be wondering how children could be protected if school principals were not given the right to take actions they thought necessary. "I would not like what appears to have happened in this case happen in other schools," she said.
The school in Bray is a VEC school and the VEC has the ultimate say in expulsions under the Vocational Education Act, 1930. The VEC is made up of local figures and normally contains several TDs and councillors, as well as teachers and parents.
Among the members of Co Wicklow VEC are Mr Dick Roche TD, Mr Liam Kavanagh, a former TD, and Mr Billy Timmins, also a TD.
While the power of the VEC has been enshrined in law since 1930, it is unusual for a VEC to be so publicly in disagreement with the principal of one of its schools.
The National Parents' Council said it favoured VECs supporting principals if at all possible. But other sources in the education sector said principals were employees of the VEC and were subject to its directions.
David McKenna is currently in fifth year. According to Mr Justice ╙ Caoimh, it appeared he had provided cannabis to other boys during the trip to the Aran Islands.
Mr ╙ Ciarβin faces large legal bills, understood to be more than £100,000.