Reform of school zero tolerance discipline policies is complicated by a lack of systematic evidence on the prevalence and characteristics of such policies. Through document analysis, this study compares explicit zero tolerance laws/policies and mandatory expulsion laws/policies across the domains of federal law, state law, district policy, and…

This study used student suspension data from one suburban and one rural school district in Missouri to describe the relationship between participation in long-term suspension credit-recovery programs and graduation rates of those same suspended students. Students who participated in a long-term suspension credit recovery program were 8.8 times…

The Zero Tolerance policy was intended to eliminate learners who are a danger to a learning institution (Henson, 2012). The development of this policy was to assist schools with better policing approaches of students conducts by employing tough disciplinary action and subsequently provide a safer learning environment. While the Zero Tolerance…

Restorative justice (RJ) has gained attention as an alternative to exclusionary discipline practices and as a solution to the racial discipline gap. While recognizing the possibilities of RJ, this article argues that it is crucial to pause and consider inherent contradictions and risks of RJ in schools. We argue that schools are governed by a…

The use of narratives and storytelling has become an increasingly common strategy in grassroots organizing and advocacy efforts to influence policy change. Drawing on qualitative interviews and observations, Jeffrey Moyer, Mark Warren, and Andrew King present a case study of the successful campaign by Voices of Youth in Chicago Education (VOYCE)…

Many students in our school system are being forced out of the classroom due to harsh discipline policies focused on rules rather than the child and the contextualized infraction. These policies punish them by taking away the very thing that could possibly change their lives, their education. The way we deal with behavior issues in the classroom…

Nationally, Black girls experience disproportionate discipline consequences more than any other group of students, starting in preschool with Black girls making up 20% of girls enrolled, but 54% of girls suspended from preschool (Camera, 2017). Inequitable, exclusionary discipline practices occur because there are many forms of institutionalized…

The reasons minority students are subject to exclusionary discipline more often than others are varied, but many experts agree that they often have little to do with the students themselves. Large rates of suspensions and expulsions tend to result from discipline policies in need of revision that are exacerbated by numerous administrators and…

Many public urban K-12 schools are in neighborhoods that struggle with systemic social injustices that include poverty, racism, violence, and lack of meaningful opportunities. These realities threaten students' success in school and contribute to injustices in the school system, such as disproportionality in discipline for students of color. In…

Zero tolerance policies have contributed to suspension and expulsion becoming common methods of addressing problem behaviors in schools. If suspension and expulsion are being used as forms of punishment, they should theoretically result in a reduction of problem behavior after their administration. In reality, exclusionary disciplinary practices…

The school-to-prison pipeline is a booming pipeline that is the cause for alarm. Increasingly, this pipeline includes more of Chicano males, and this dynamic is reflected in low rates of high school graduates going to college contrasted with the growing number of Chicanos in the juvenile justice and court systems. This study focuses on the impacts…

Historically, students with disabilities have been disproportionately exposed to exclusionary discipline including in-school suspensions, out-of-school suspensions, and expulsions. Despite association with lower academic achievement, increased risk of negative behaviors over time and involvement in the juvenile justice system, these exclusionary…

Though there is extensive research on the health outcomes of individuals who have experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), society at large has not embraced this ground-breaking research and many still believe that the use of harsh punishment for students provides the same intended result as a discipline approach that teaches coping…

Beginning in the early 1990s, states and districts enacted zero-tolerance discipline policies that relied heavily on out-of-school suspensions. Recently, districts nationwide have revised these policies in favor of more tempered disciplinary responses. In 2012-2013, Philadelphia reformed its discipline policy to limit suspensions for nonviolent…

Media reports have detailed the growing prevalence of incidents of racism and racial violence in K-12 schools and districts throughout the United States. The public nature of these incidents often requires a formal response from school and district leadership in the form of a press release, letter, or public statement. This study is an analysis of…