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PracticePerspectives
Graduation or Incarceration? How School DisciplinePolicies Shape the Path for Vulnerable Students
SummerI S S U E
A U G U S T2 0 1 4
BackgroundThe U.S. public school system previouslyacted as part of the social safety net forstudents and families. When a studenthad a problem at home that waspresented in school, such as hunger,emotional distress, illness or even lice,the school often advocated on behalf ofthe student and engaged with the familyto find resolution. Many times the schoolpersonnel involved with the student (e.g.,the school social worker, teacher, nurse,and principal) collaborated for thestudent’s overall well-being in additionto the student’s academic success.
Today however, the public school systemperforms a different role in our communities.Schools are less likely to have the resourcesand discipline policies to fully support studentsas they develop. As a result, public schoolsare often the gateway for vulnerable youth toenter into the juvenile justice system. Manystudents are introduced to law enforcement forconduct that would have traditionally beenreferred to the principal’s office for disciplinaryaction within the school program. Now many ofthese students are referred to law enforcementwithout the incident being addressed first within
the school. This is often the case even forincidences regarding minor behavior issues.
This shift in discipline procedures is beingseen across the country. Schools are currentlyunder rigid educational guidelines in order toreceive funding. This inflexibility significantlydiminishes schools’ capacity to function as asocial safety net. In 2007, it was reportedthat the U.S. spends almost $70 billion annuallyon incarceration, probation and parole(Amurao, n.d.). Between 1987 and 2007 theincrease in funding to penal system programsincreased by 127% as compared to a 21%increase in funding for higher education duringthe same 20-year time span (Amurao, n.d.).
Over the past decade, high school graduationrates have increased. The dropout ratedeclined from twelve percent in 1990 toseven percent in 2011 (NCES, n.d.). Eventhough the dropout rates have declined, eachyear almost one-third of public high schoolstudents fail to graduate from high school(Monrad, 2007). These students are typicallyfrom the most vulnerable populations. Thedropout rate for students with emotional/behavioral disabilities is approximately twicethat of general education students (Monrad,2007). High school students from low-incomefamilies (the lowest 20%) were six times more
Sharon Issurdatt Dietsche,ACSW, L ICSW, LCSW-C
Senior Prac t i ce Assoc ia te
Sdie t [email protected]
750 First Street NEWashington, DC 20002-4241SocialWorkers.org
The NationalAssociation ofSocial Workers
750 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20002-4241
SocialWorkers.org
©2014 National Association ofSocial Workers. All Rights Reserved.
Practice Perspectives Summer August 2014
The dropout rate for
students with
emotional/behavioral
disabilities is
approximately twice
that of general
education students
(Monrad, 2007).
likely to drop out than students from higherincome families (Monrad, 2007). Amongminorities, only about 52% of Hispanic studentsand 56% of African-American students willgraduate in four years, compared with 78% ofwhite students (Monrad, 2007).
Recent Trends in School DisciplinePoliciesOver the past two decades in schools across thecountry, a paradigm shift from students beingdisciplined within the school program to studentsbeing disciplined by law enforcement has occurred.Schools are often under strict guidelines to havestudents perform to pre-determined standards inorder to receive funding. This pressure can havea direct impact on a teacher’s classroom styleand behavior management. Teachers may beoverwhelmed with instructional requirements thatforce “teaching to the test” in order to cover allthe content required for test preparation. Manyschool systems also evaluate teachers for payraises and extension of employment based ontest scores. These practices leave teachers feelingpressure to ensure students perform well onstandardized tests in order to keep their jobs.Students who have learning issues, attentionalissues, or any other issue that prevents them frombeing able to comprehend the academicmaterial in the way it is being taught, maybecome more prone to acting out. Previously, thestudent’s infraction may have been addresseddirectly with the teacher within the classroom asthe first step. Now, students who misbehave inclass are often removed from class as a first stepin discipline. Due to the enormous pressuresrelated to their job security, teachers may relymore frequently on school administrators toaddress “problem students” who distract from testpreparation. The American Civil Liberties Unionreported that “zero tolerance” policies criminalizeminor infractions of school rules, while high-stakestesting programs encouraged educators to pushout low-performing students to improve theiroverall test scores. Many of these students havelearning disabilities or histories of poverty, abuseor neglect” (ACLU, (c) 2013).
Schools are also operating under increasedscrutiny and fears related to potentially dangerousstudents in the classroom. After the 1999Columbine High School shooting massacre, zerotolerance policies became common in schools.Again, this shift in discipline policy pertained to
funding. “Zero tolerance” initially resulted from a1994 federal law that required all states receivingfederal money to require school districts to expelany student found to have brought a weapon toschool for at least a year (Science Daily, 2010).These policies are often implemented in hopes ofdeterring dangerous and violent behavior andpromoting increased school safety. However, inAugust of 2006, a Zero Tolerance Task Forceconvened to explore the effectiveness of thesepolicies. The report concluded that “the zerotolerance policies in schools, although intendedto reduce school violence as behavior problems,can actually have the opposite effect, in addition,such policies not only fail to make schools safeor more effective in handling student behavior,they can actually increase the instances ofproblem behavior and dropout rates” (APA, 2006).
The U.S. public school system remains underdecreased funding allocation due to thestruggling economy and competing communityneeds. Due to these increased financialconstraints, schools have relied on “schoolresource officers” to handle misconduct withinschools. School resource officers often replaceschool social workers, guidance counselors andother student support personnel with mentalhealth and child development expertise. Theseresource officers also play a significant role inthe school discipline policy shift. Instead of theteacher handling an incidence first and thenreferring the student to the principal for furtherdiscipline, the first contact the student often hasregarding even simple infractions could be witha school resource officer. “Many of these officersare unprepared to work with children and aretrained from a criminal justice standpoint. As aresult, children are far more likely to be subjectedto school-based arrests than they were ageneration ago (ACLU, (b), 2013). The vastmajority of these arrests are for non-violent offensessuch as “disruptive conduct” or “disturbance ofthe peace” (ACLU (b) 2013)” (Issurdatt 2013).
This phenomenon is known as the “school toprison pipeline.” The “school to prison pipeline”has occurred over the last few decades asschool systems have increasingly relied uponzero tolerance policies and law enforcement tomanage discipline in schools, resulting in risingincidents of suspensions, expulsions andschool-based arrests (Issurdatt, 2013). It iscommon for schools, as these extreme discipline
measures become more widespread, to ignore orbypass due process protections for students,leaving them unable to adequately defendthemselves (ACLU, a, 2013). “The lack of dueprocess is particularly acute for students withspecial needs—who are disproportionallyrepresented in the school to prison pipeline—despite the heightened protections afforded tothem under current laws” (ACLU, a, 2013).
Who is most at risk?School discipline policies have negatively affectedthe most vulnerable populations for decades,however, now there are greater consequencesthan before. Many minor infractions are nowconstrued as criminal behavior, resulting in largernumbers of students being introduced to thejuvenile justice system. In January 2014, the ACLUreported that the U.S. Department of Justice andDepartment of Education acknowledged thatrace discrimination is a real problem in schooldiscipline (Vaggins, 2014). “The U.S. has thehighest incarceration rate in the world, and itsprisons and jails are overwhelmingly filled withAfrican Americans and Latinos. The paths toprison for young African American and Latinomen are many, but the starting points are oftenschool and foster care systems” (Amurao, n.d.).
A review of the school to prison pipelinerevealed:• Students of color face harsher discipline and
are more likely to be pushed out of schoolthan white students.
• Youth of color are more likely than whiteyouth to be placed in the foster care system.
• 40% of students expelled from U.S. schoolseach year are black.
• 70% of students involved in “in-school”arrests or referred to law enforcement areblack or Latino.
• Black students are three and a half times morelikely to be suspended than white students.
• Black and Latino students are twice as likelyto not graduate high school as white students.
• 68% of all males in state and federal prisondo not have a high school diploma.
• 70% of inmates in California State prisonare former foster care youth.
• Black and Latino males make up 61% of theincarcerated population despite being only30% of the U.S. population (Amurao, n.d.).
Ways to Bridge the Gap: SchoolSocial Work Action Steps School social workers are extensively trained tomanage and deal with crisis. In-depth trainingregarding issues affecting young people such aschild development and mental health issues—including oppositional defiance and antisocialbehaviors—position school social workersadvantageously to guide school disciplinepolicies. Though the public school system iswidely varied and complex, there are waysschool social workers can help influencediscipline policies.
Understand current school discipline policiesGaining a full understanding of the school’sdiscipline policy is critical to effectively assessingits effectiveness. Identifying mandates created toacquire funding is crucial to understanding thedesign. There are a range of consequences astudent can receive for infractions including inschool or out of school suspension, after schooldetention, expulsion and arrest. Obtaininginformation on when certain policies are usedand when they are not employed, including howmuch discretion school personnel have indetermining the consequence is important.Information on the implementation of zero-tolerancepolicies, if school resource officers are employedor utilized by the school, as well as how manyarrests are made on school campus can providedetail. School social workers can acquire thisinformation within the schools they work often bycollaborating with school administration.
Assess discipline policy implementation andeffectiveness Obtaining data regarding the number of studentswho receive discipline measures, as well asinformation such as special education status,racial/ethnic background, gender, foster carestatus, etc. is key in determining impartiality inimplementation of discipline policies andprocedures. This information may be availablethrough school administration or other governmententities requiring such data to be collected.
Using evaluation skills to determine theeffectiveness of school discipline policies can be beneficial. Gathering data on recidivism rates for students can provide importantinformation in determining strengths andweaknesses in current discipline policies.
Though the public
school system is
widely varied and
complex, there are
ways school social
workers can help
influence discipline
policies.
The dropout rate for
students with
emotional/behavioral
disabilities is
approximately twice
that of general
education students
(Monrad, 2007).
likely to drop out than students from higherincome families (Monrad, 2007). Amongminorities, only about 52% of Hispanic studentsand 56% of African-American students willgraduate in four years, compared with 78% ofwhite students (Monrad, 2007).
Recent Trends in School DisciplinePoliciesOver the past two decades in schools across thecountry, a paradigm shift from students beingdisciplined within the school program to studentsbeing disciplined by law enforcement has occurred.Schools are often under strict guidelines to havestudents perform to pre-determined standards inorder to receive funding. This pressure can havea direct impact on a teacher’s classroom styleand behavior management. Teachers may beoverwhelmed with instructional requirements thatforce “teaching to the test” in order to cover allthe content required for test preparation. Manyschool systems also evaluate teachers for payraises and extension of employment based ontest scores. These practices leave teachers feelingpressure to ensure students perform well onstandardized tests in order to keep their jobs.Students who have learning issues, attentionalissues, or any other issue that prevents them frombeing able to comprehend the academicmaterial in the way it is being taught, maybecome more prone to acting out. Previously, thestudent’s infraction may have been addresseddirectly with the teacher within the classroom asthe first step. Now, students who misbehave inclass are often removed from class as a first stepin discipline. Due to the enormous pressuresrelated to their job security, teachers may relymore frequently on school administrators toaddress “problem students” who distract from testpreparation. The American Civil Liberties Unionreported that “zero tolerance” policies criminalizeminor infractions of school rules, while high-stakestesting programs encouraged educators to pushout low-performing students to improve theiroverall test scores. Many of these students havelearning disabilities or histories of poverty, abuseor neglect” (ACLU, (c) 2013).
Schools are also operating under increasedscrutiny and fears related to potentially dangerousstudents in the classroom. After the 1999Columbine High School shooting massacre, zerotolerance policies became common in schools.Again, this shift in discipline policy pertained to
funding. “Zero tolerance” initially resulted from a1994 federal law that required all states receivingfederal money to require school districts to expelany student found to have brought a weapon toschool for at least a year (Science Daily, 2010).These policies are often implemented in hopes ofdeterring dangerous and violent behavior andpromoting increased school safety. However, inAugust of 2006, a Zero Tolerance Task Forceconvened to explore the effectiveness of thesepolicies. The report concluded that “the zerotolerance policies in schools, although intendedto reduce school violence as behavior problems,can actually have the opposite effect, in addition,such policies not only fail to make schools safeor more effective in handling student behavior,they can actually increase the instances ofproblem behavior and dropout rates” (APA, 2006).
The U.S. public school system remains underdecreased funding allocation due to thestruggling economy and competing communityneeds. Due to these increased financialconstraints, schools have relied on “schoolresource officers” to handle misconduct withinschools. School resource officers often replaceschool social workers, guidance counselors andother student support personnel with mentalhealth and child development expertise. Theseresource officers also play a significant role inthe school discipline policy shift. Instead of theteacher handling an incidence first and thenreferring the student to the principal for furtherdiscipline, the first contact the student often hasregarding even simple infractions could be witha school resource officer. “Many of these officersare unprepared to work with children and aretrained from a criminal justice standpoint. As aresult, children are far more likely to be subjectedto school-based arrests than they were ageneration ago (ACLU, (b), 2013). The vastmajority of these arrests are for non-violent offensessuch as “disruptive conduct” or “disturbance ofthe peace” (ACLU (b) 2013)” (Issurdatt 2013).
This phenomenon is known as the “school toprison pipeline.” The “school to prison pipeline”has occurred over the last few decades asschool systems have increasingly relied uponzero tolerance policies and law enforcement tomanage discipline in schools, resulting in risingincidents of suspensions, expulsions andschool-based arrests (Issurdatt, 2013). It iscommon for schools, as these extreme discipline
measures become more widespread, to ignore orbypass due process protections for students,leaving them unable to adequately defendthemselves (ACLU, a, 2013). “The lack of dueprocess is particularly acute for students withspecial needs—who are disproportionallyrepresented in the school to prison pipeline—despite the heightened protections afforded tothem under current laws” (ACLU, a, 2013).
Who is most at risk?School discipline policies have negatively affectedthe most vulnerable populations for decades,however, now there are greater consequencesthan before. Many minor infractions are nowconstrued as criminal behavior, resulting in largernumbers of students being introduced to thejuvenile justice system. In January 2014, the ACLUreported that the U.S. Department of Justice andDepartment of Education acknowledged thatrace discrimination is a real problem in schooldiscipline (Vaggins, 2014). “The U.S. has thehighest incarceration rate in the world, and itsprisons and jails are overwhelmingly filled withAfrican Americans and Latinos. The paths toprison for young African American and Latinomen are many, but the starting points are oftenschool and foster care systems” (Amurao, n.d.).
A review of the school to prison pipelinerevealed:• Students of color face harsher discipline and
are more likely to be pushed out of schoolthan white students.
• Youth of color are more likely than whiteyouth to be placed in the foster care system.
• 40% of students expelled from U.S. schoolseach year are black.
• 70% of students involved in “in-school”arrests or referred to law enforcement areblack or Latino.
• Black students are three and a half times morelikely to be suspended than white students.
• Black and Latino students are twice as likelyto not graduate high school as white students.
• 68% of all males in state and federal prisondo not have a high school diploma.
• 70% of inmates in California State prisonare former foster care youth.
• Black and Latino males make up 61% of theincarcerated population despite being only30% of the U.S. population (Amurao, n.d.).
Ways to Bridge the Gap: SchoolSocial Work Action Steps School social workers are extensively trained tomanage and deal with crisis. In-depth trainingregarding issues affecting young people such aschild development and mental health issues—including oppositional defiance and antisocialbehaviors—position school social workersadvantageously to guide school disciplinepolicies. Though the public school system iswidely varied and complex, there are waysschool social workers can help influencediscipline policies.
Understand current school discipline policiesGaining a full understanding of the school’sdiscipline policy is critical to effectively assessingits effectiveness. Identifying mandates created toacquire funding is crucial to understanding thedesign. There are a range of consequences astudent can receive for infractions including inschool or out of school suspension, after schooldetention, expulsion and arrest. Obtaininginformation on when certain policies are usedand when they are not employed, including howmuch discretion school personnel have indetermining the consequence is important.Information on the implementation of zero-tolerancepolicies, if school resource officers are employedor utilized by the school, as well as how manyarrests are made on school campus can providedetail. School social workers can acquire thisinformation within the schools they work often bycollaborating with school administration.
Assess discipline policy implementation andeffectiveness Obtaining data regarding the number of studentswho receive discipline measures, as well asinformation such as special education status,racial/ethnic background, gender, foster carestatus, etc. is key in determining impartiality inimplementation of discipline policies andprocedures. This information may be availablethrough school administration or other governmententities requiring such data to be collected.
Using evaluation skills to determine theeffectiveness of school discipline policies can be beneficial. Gathering data on recidivism rates for students can provide importantinformation in determining strengths andweaknesses in current discipline policies.
Though the public
school system is
widely varied and
complex, there are
ways school social
workers can help
influence discipline
policies.
School social workers
can build alliances
with agencies
focused on creating
justice regarding
school discipline
policies, including
preventing the school
to prison pipeline
and advocating for
policies that create
school connectedness
for all students.
Identify ResourcesSchool social workers can build alliances withagencies focused on creating justice regardingschool discipline policies, including preventingthe school to prison pipeline and advocating forpolicies that create school connectedness for allstudents. Agencies that gather and analyze dataon what population is most impacted by particularschool discipline policies can also be significantresources. Extensive and current research isavailable through a variety of resources that canhelp guide a school social worker’s approach.
Create awarenessDespite considerable research on the school toprison pipeline and the ineffectiveness of somezero tolerance policies, they are still prevalentamong school systems. School social workerscan help draw attention to the widespread safetynet issue of school discipline problems within thecountry. “Many adults assume that school disciplinepolicies are similar to when they were in schooldecades ago and are unaware of how the lackof funding, test-based accountability and othermajor changes have affected how students aredisciplined for even minor misconduct in schools”(Issurdatt, 2013). Providing statistics and alternativepolicies through evidence-based research canhelp create a greater understand of the issue.
Advocate for effective discipline measuresMuch research and statistical data on zerotolerance and prevalence of the school to prisonpipeline has been acquired. Despite thisinformation, many schools still implement policiesevidenced as ineffective or unjust as many ofthese policies are attached to funding. Researchhas consistently shown that when students are
more engaged in school and feel a sense ofconnectedness, rates of violence go down andschool safety increases. “Increasing the strengthand quality of classroom engagement by creatingcaring, supportive, culturally responsive learningenvironments is often effective in reducing acts ofviolence,” (Osher, Bear, Sprague & Doyle,2010). School social workers can advocate forand train school administrators and teachers ingaining skills to better address discipline issuesincluding minimally disruptive behaviors.
ConclusionAs schools face massive budget and fundingissues along with rigid guidelines for testachievement from students, schools have becomeless and less of the social safety net they weredecades ago. Zero tolerance policies, which areoften attached to funding streams, are alsofrequently regarded as appropriate responses toensure safety, despite research reporting thecontrary. Students who have emotional,behavioral or learning issues are often left out ofmainstream learning. Many of these students arefurther disadvantaged by their racial/ethnicbackground, gender, or special needs, andviewed as problematic and in need of harsher,more exclusionary discipline. Schools often employschool resource officers rather than school socialworkers and other student support personnel whohave mental health training to manage disciplineissues within the school. These shifts have createdthe school to prison pipeline that severelynegatively affects students of color and othervulnerable students. School social workers are inkey positions to help create awareness andadvocate for evidence based research for moreeffective school discipline policies.
Assessing Effectiveness of SchoolDiscipline Policies
The following is a tool to help school socialworkers conduct a preliminary assessmentregarding a school’s discipline policy’seffectiveness.
• Does the school employ zero tolerance policies?
• Does the school receive funding for zero tolerance policies?
• Does the school utilize resource officers?
• Does the school employ student support personnel including
a school social worker?
• How many in-school suspensions are approved each year?
• How many out of school suspensions are approved each year?
• How many expulsions are approved each year?
• How many arrests are made on the school campus each year?
• What is the racial/ethnic background, gender, age,
education status of the students involved in suspensions,
expulsions and arrests?
• What is the first point of discipline for a student (teacher,
principal, school resource officer?)
• How does the school involve the parents/family/caregivers
of the students involved in discipline policies?
• What is the general feeling towards students who commit
infractions and require discipline measures?
• How many of the discipline issues that receive suspension,
expulsion, or arrest could be regarded as minor infractions?
• How many infractions are managed by the teacher first?
The principal first? School resource officer or law
enforcement first?
ReferencesAmerican Civil Liberties Union (a) (2013). What isthe School-to-Prison Pipeline? Retrieved fromaclu.org/racial-justice/what-school-prison-pipeline
American Civil Liberties Union (b) (2013). School toPrison Pipeline: Talking Points. Retrieved fromaclu.org/racial-justice/school-prison-pipeline-talking-points
American Civil Liberties Union (c) (2013).School-to-Prison Pipeline. Retrieved fromaclu.org/racial-justice/school-prison-pipeline
American Psychological Association (2006). Zero Tolerance Policies Can Have UnintendedEffects, APA report finds. Retrieved fromapa.org/monitor/act06/tolerance.aspx
Amurao, Carla (n.d.). Travis Smiley Reports FactSheet: How bad is the school-to-prison pipeline?Retrieved from www.pbs.org/wnet/tavissmiley/tsr/education-under-arrest/school-to-prison-pipeline-fact-sheet/
Issurdatt, Sharon (2013). Call the Principal, Not thePolice: Preventing the school to prison pipeline.Practice Perspective. NASW Press: Washington, DC.
Monrad, Maggie (2007). High School Dropout: A Quick Stats Fact Sheet. Retrieved fromwww.betterhighschools.org/pubs/documents/NHSC_DropoutFactSheet.pdf
National Center for Education Statistics (n.d.). Fast Facts: Dropout Rates. Retrieved fromhttp://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=16
Osher, D., Bear, G.G., Sprague, J.R., & Doyle, W.(2010). How Can We Improve School Discipline?Educational Researcher, 39, 48-58.
Science Daily (2010). Zero Tolerance Ineffective in Schools, Study Finds. Retrieved fromsciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100510132157.htm
Vaggins, Deborah (2014). Is Race Discrimination in School Discipline a Real Problem? Retrieved from www.aclu.org/blog/racial-justice/race-discrimination-school-discipline-real-problem
School social workers
are in key positions
to help create
awareness and
advocate for
evidence based
research for more
effective school
discipline policies.
School social workers
can build alliances
with agencies
focused on creating
justice regarding
school discipline
policies, including
preventing the school
to prison pipeline
and advocating for
policies that create
school connectedness
for all students.
Identify ResourcesSchool social workers can build alliances withagencies focused on creating justice regardingschool discipline policies, including preventingthe school to prison pipeline and advocating forpolicies that create school connectedness for allstudents. Agencies that gather and analyze dataon what population is most impacted by particularschool discipline policies can also be significantresources. Extensive and current research isavailable through a variety of resources that canhelp guide a school social worker’s approach.
Create awarenessDespite considerable research on the school toprison pipeline and the ineffectiveness of somezero tolerance policies, they are still prevalentamong school systems. School social workerscan help draw attention to the widespread safetynet issue of school discipline problems within thecountry. “Many adults assume that school disciplinepolicies are similar to when they were in schooldecades ago and are unaware of how the lackof funding, test-based accountability and othermajor changes have affected how students aredisciplined for even minor misconduct in schools”(Issurdatt, 2013). Providing statistics and alternativepolicies through evidence-based research canhelp create a greater understand of the issue.
Advocate for effective discipline measuresMuch research and statistical data on zerotolerance and prevalence of the school to prisonpipeline has been acquired. Despite thisinformation, many schools still implement policiesevidenced as ineffective or unjust as many ofthese policies are attached to funding. Researchhas consistently shown that when students are
more engaged in school and feel a sense ofconnectedness, rates of violence go down andschool safety increases. “Increasing the strengthand quality of classroom engagement by creatingcaring, supportive, culturally responsive learningenvironments is often effective in reducing acts ofviolence,” (Osher, Bear, Sprague & Doyle,2010). School social workers can advocate forand train school administrators and teachers ingaining skills to better address discipline issuesincluding minimally disruptive behaviors.
ConclusionAs schools face massive budget and fundingissues along with rigid guidelines for testachievement from students, schools have becomeless and less of the social safety net they weredecades ago. Zero tolerance policies, which areoften attached to funding streams, are alsofrequently regarded as appropriate responses toensure safety, despite research reporting thecontrary. Students who have emotional,behavioral or learning issues are often left out ofmainstream learning. Many of these students arefurther disadvantaged by their racial/ethnicbackground, gender, or special needs, andviewed as problematic and in need of harsher,more exclusionary discipline. Schools often employschool resource officers rather than school socialworkers and other student support personnel whohave mental health training to manage disciplineissues within the school. These shifts have createdthe school to prison pipeline that severelynegatively affects students of color and othervulnerable students. School social workers are inkey positions to help create awareness andadvocate for evidence based research for moreeffective school discipline policies.
Assessing Effectiveness of SchoolDiscipline Policies
The following is a tool to help school socialworkers conduct a preliminary assessmentregarding a school’s discipline policy’seffectiveness.
• Does the school employ zero tolerance policies?
• Does the school receive funding for zero tolerance policies?
• Does the school utilize resource officers?
• Does the school employ student support personnel including
a school social worker?
• How many in-school suspensions are approved each year?
• How many out of school suspensions are approved each year?
• How many expulsions are approved each year?
• How many arrests are made on the school campus each year?
• What is the racial/ethnic background, gender, age,
education status of the students involved in suspensions,
expulsions and arrests?
• What is the first point of discipline for a student (teacher,
principal, school resource officer?)
• How does the school involve the parents/family/caregivers
of the students involved in discipline policies?
• What is the general feeling towards students who commit
infractions and require discipline measures?
• How many of the discipline issues that receive suspension,
expulsion, or arrest could be regarded as minor infractions?
• How many infractions are managed by the teacher first?
The principal first? School resource officer or law
enforcement first?
ReferencesAmerican Civil Liberties Union (a) (2013). What isthe School-to-Prison Pipeline? Retrieved fromaclu.org/racial-justice/what-school-prison-pipeline
American Civil Liberties Union (b) (2013). School toPrison Pipeline: Talking Points. Retrieved fromaclu.org/racial-justice/school-prison-pipeline-talking-points
American Civil Liberties Union (c) (2013).School-to-Prison Pipeline. Retrieved fromaclu.org/racial-justice/school-prison-pipeline
American Psychological Association (2006). Zero Tolerance Policies Can Have UnintendedEffects, APA report finds. Retrieved fromapa.org/monitor/act06/tolerance.aspx
Amurao, Carla (n.d.). Travis Smiley Reports FactSheet: How bad is the school-to-prison pipeline?Retrieved from www.pbs.org/wnet/tavissmiley/tsr/education-under-arrest/school-to-prison-pipeline-fact-sheet/
Issurdatt, Sharon (2013). Call the Principal, Not thePolice: Preventing the school to prison pipeline.Practice Perspective. NASW Press: Washington, DC.
Monrad, Maggie (2007). High School Dropout: A Quick Stats Fact Sheet. Retrieved fromwww.betterhighschools.org/pubs/documents/NHSC_DropoutFactSheet.pdf
National Center for Education Statistics (n.d.). Fast Facts: Dropout Rates. Retrieved fromhttp://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=16
Osher, D., Bear, G.G., Sprague, J.R., & Doyle, W.(2010). How Can We Improve School Discipline?Educational Researcher, 39, 48-58.
Science Daily (2010). Zero Tolerance Ineffective in Schools, Study Finds. Retrieved fromsciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100510132157.htm
Vaggins, Deborah (2014). Is Race Discrimination in School Discipline a Real Problem? Retrieved from www.aclu.org/blog/racial-justice/race-discrimination-school-discipline-real-problem
School social workers
are in key positions
to help create
awareness and
advocate for
evidence based
research for more
effective school
discipline policies.
PracticePerspectives
Graduation or Incarceration? How School DisciplinePolicies Shape the Path for Vulnerable Students
SummerI S S U E
A U G U S T2 0 1 4
BackgroundThe U.S. public school system previouslyacted as part of the social safety net forstudents and families. When a studenthad a problem at home that waspresented in school, such as hunger,emotional distress, illness or even lice,the school often advocated on behalf ofthe student and engaged with the familyto find resolution. Many times the schoolpersonnel involved with the student (e.g.,the school social worker, teacher, nurse,and principal) collaborated for thestudent’s overall well-being in additionto the student’s academic success.
Today however, the public school systemperforms a different role in our communities.Schools are less likely to have the resourcesand discipline policies to fully support studentsas they develop. As a result, public schoolsare often the gateway for vulnerable youth toenter into the juvenile justice system. Manystudents are introduced to law enforcement forconduct that would have traditionally beenreferred to the principal’s office for disciplinaryaction within the school program. Now many ofthese students are referred to law enforcementwithout the incident being addressed first within
the school. This is often the case even forincidences regarding minor behavior issues.
This shift in discipline procedures is beingseen across the country. Schools are currentlyunder rigid educational guidelines in order toreceive funding. This inflexibility significantlydiminishes schools’ capacity to function as asocial safety net. In 2007, it was reportedthat the U.S. spends almost $70 billion annuallyon incarceration, probation and parole(Amurao, n.d.). Between 1987 and 2007 theincrease in funding to penal system programsincreased by 127% as compared to a 21%increase in funding for higher education duringthe same 20-year time span (Amurao, n.d.).
Over the past decade, high school graduationrates have increased. The dropout ratedeclined from twelve percent in 1990 toseven percent in 2011 (NCES, n.d.). Eventhough the dropout rates have declined, eachyear almost one-third of public high schoolstudents fail to graduate from high school(Monrad, 2007). These students are typicallyfrom the most vulnerable populations. Thedropout rate for students with emotional/behavioral disabilities is approximately twicethat of general education students (Monrad,2007). High school students from low-incomefamilies (the lowest 20%) were six times more
Sharon Issurdatt Dietsche,ACSW, L ICSW, LCSW-C
Senior Prac t i ce Assoc ia te
Sdie t [email protected]
750 First Street NEWashington, DC 20002-4241SocialWorkers.org
The NationalAssociation ofSocial Workers
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Practice Perspectives Summer August 2014
