CAMDEN — Following Wednesday's student walkouts protesting teacher layoffs, Superintendent Paymon Rouhanifard issued guidelines to district officials stating that while students should be shown some leniency, teachers who participated will be "disciplined."

The email, provided to the South Jersey Times by the district, stresses that "students need to be in school," and that any protests should take place outside of the school day. He added that disciplinary actions against students who stage future walkouts should avoid suspensions and expulsions.

"Students need to be in school, and suspending students will only take students out of the classroom," reads the email, sent shortly before 8 p.m. Wednesday. "If students continue to leave school, responses should be adjusted accordingly.

"But now is the time to engage students, in school, to hear out their concerns and share accurate information."

School employees will be shown much less latitude with regard to their behavior. According to the email, staff members who left school early on Wednesday to join the protests "will be disciplined."

In the email, Rouhanifard asked school principals to provide the names, positions and departure times of all staff members who walked out.

"Obviously, staff members have the right to share their opinions, too, but any demonstrating needs to happen outside of the work day," said Rouhanifard in the email.

According to the superintendent, district officials will be visiting schools to speak with students directly throughout the next two weeks.

In addition, parents will be receiving calls at home about "the importance of students being in school throughout the day."

More than 300 students from multiple city schools staged a walkout Wednesday, and marched to the district administration building to protest the termination of 241 school employees, including 206 teachers.

Those 241 layoffs follow the termination of 94 central administration employees late last month.

The Camden school district began the most recent budget process with a $75 million deficit, including a $42 million operating budget shortfall. According to Rouhanifard, non-personnel cuts and the use of surplus funds have helped fill all but $28 million of that gap. However, the superintendent said the remaining gap will have to be reconciled with the elimination of 575 positions, many of them vacant.

In all, 335 central office and school employees have been laid off.

Students, with leadership from a group of adults identifying themselves as parents and community activists, have stated they are planning more walkouts and marches for next week, including a protest in front of city hall next Tuesday, and in Trenton the following Thursday.

The New Jersey Education Association, which represents the state's teachers, does not advocate teachers or students staging walkouts during the school day, said Steve Wollmer, communications director for the NJEA.

In a 2010 statewide walkout by students angered over state funding cuts for schools, Gov. Chris Christie's administration implied that the NJEA was encouraging the walkouts.

While the NJEA doesn't have a written policy in place regarding teachers joining protests during school hours, Wollmer said its position is clear. "We would never encourage our members to do something like that."

Contact staff writer Jason Laday at 856-686-3628 or jladay@southjerseymedia.com.