UPDATED
Several national groups are asking school districts to stop suspending students out of school and replace this form of discipline with what they consider to be 鈥渕ore constructive鈥� approaches that benefit students, teachers, and communities.
The New York-based Dignity in Schools Campaign launched its call for a moratorium on out-of-school suspension at a gathering in Los Angeles on Tuesday, joined by .
They cited a growing body of research and data that shows the disproportionate use of suspension, in which black and Latino students and students with disabilities are more likely to be suspended and more likely to be punished harshly compared to other students for the same infractions. The research also shows the connection between school punishment and students entering the juvenile justice system. The groups said students who need to spend the most time in class are losing it at an alarming rate.
鈥淎t a time when we should be expanding learning opportunities for all young people, we are cutting classroom time for those who need it most,鈥� said Jermaine Banks, a student organizer with in Miami, in a statement. 鈥淭he harsh discipline policies now in place around the country do not make schools safer nor improve academic achievement, but instead feed the school-to-prison pipeline.鈥�
Some researchers argue that discipline data is incorrectly used as a measure of school safety and doesn鈥檛 actually contribute to the security of a school campus.
The groups have created a website, , which asks district leaders to sign a pledge for a year not to suspend students out of school.
At the same time, Dignity in Schools launched a 鈥溾�� that they hope schools will adopt as an alternative to zero-tolerance discipline policies that rely heavily on out-of-school suspensions and expulsions to address student behavior.
鈥淚f we know there are alternatives out there, ... we would be foolish to not try them,鈥� said Tina Dove, the director of programs for the National Opportunity to Learn Campaign, which is endorsing the moratorium. 鈥淯ltimately the goal should be... keeping kids in the school house and not in the jailhouse. It鈥檚 just that simple.鈥�
She pointed a case this month in which the federal Department of Justice the Meridian school district in Mississippi had contributed to the 鈥渟chool-to-prison pipeline鈥� because the city police agency arrests all students referred to it by the district. 鈥淭he children arrested by [the Meridian Police Department]are then sent to the county juvenile justice system, where existing due process protections are illusory and inadequate. The Youth Court places children on probation, and the terms of the probation set by the Youth Court and [the Mississippi Division of Youth Services] require children on probation to serve any suspensions from school incarcerated in the juvenile detention center,鈥� the DOJ wrote in a letter to the agencies.
鈥淣o one could dare look me in the face and say 鈥楾hat鈥檚 acceptable,鈥欌�� said Dove, a former high school teacher. 鈥淚t truly says we have gone off the edge. It鈥檚 an indicator of how far gone this is in some places.鈥�
At a hosted by the Office of Safe and Healthy Students, Lafayette Parish, La., Superintendent Patrick Cooper said that his district has eliminated essentially all out-of-school suspensions and expulsions in his 30,500-student district.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to put you out there,鈥� Cooper said. 鈥淓verything the research is saying is about connections with people.鈥�
In a statement today, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten said her organization supports the initiative and will establish a leadership committee to lead the union鈥檚 response.
鈥淢any of our affiliates are already engaged in this work,鈥� she said. To support their efforts, the AFT will establish a leadership committee to lead the union鈥檚 response, survey affiliates to gain a greater understanding of their school and community needs to target support, and collaborate with Solutions Not Suspensions and other stakeholders on policy decisions regarding discipline, among other things.