ARCHIVED ARTICLES
Week of March 25, 2011
Chicago’s Schools, Police Work To Stem Violence, NPR
An NPR story on youth violence in Chicago and the role of police in schools, Emanuel says he wants kids to worry about school, not safety.
NH bill would allow stricter school discipline, Foster’s Daily Democrat
New Hampshire is considering a law that would protect teachers from being sued if they use “reasonable force” against students.
Native American boy suspended from school for long hair, ACLU steps into La. case, CBS News
In New Orleans, a Native American boy was suspended for having long hair, the ACLU has come to his defense.
School board hopefuls weigh in on suspensions, Columbia Daily Tribune
A candidate for schoolboard in Missouri is arguing that we need to suspend fewer students.
Fairfax schools’ discipline policies up for review; parents seek more leniency, The Washington Post
Task force to look into Va.’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy, WTOP
More news on the reform process in Fairfax, VA. The Washington Post reports on a public meeting held on Saturday to gather testimonials and help understand the problem. WTOP covers the upcoming VA state task force inquiry into zero tolerance policies.
Livermore Suspension and Expulsion Rates Exceed State and County Averages, The Independent
Local reporting in Livermore, CA finds that the suspension and expulsion rates there are above the county and state average.
Louisiana’s high incarceration and dropout rates concern youth advocates, TheNewsStar.com
In Louisiana, advocates are concerned about the high incarceration rate, the high juvenile incarceration rate, and the high dropout rate.
Student won’t be expelled for oregano, WAVY.com
The Virginia student who brought oregano to school won’t be expelled.
Teen who survived Golden Gate Bridge jump faces discipline at school, The San Francisco Examiner
A 17-year-old student who survived a jump off the Golden Gate Bridge faces school discipline and felony charges.
Opinions/Editorials
All children deserve a quality education, Norwich Bulletin
A local Connecticut paper rues that Governor Malloy was not asked questions about efforts to reduce the achievement gap at a recent town hall meeting.
Week of March 18, 2011
Teenager suspended from Fairfax County school over acne drug, The Washington Post
Fairfax Virginia’s discipline policies are in the news again with a report that a 13 year old girl was suspended for bringing her acne medication to school and violating the school’s zero tolerance policy on prescription drugs.
New VVSD Discipline Approach: Service, Not Suspension, Bolingbrook Patch
New VVSD discipline approach: Keep kids in school, Trib Local Bolingbrook
In Bolingbrook, IL, a school district is moving to give students more alternatives to suspension.
Panel considers Texas ban on corporal punishment, The Houston Chronicle
Designer Mark Ecko testifies before the Texas Legislature in support of a measure that would ban corporal punishment in the state. It’s part of Ecko’s national campaign to end the practice across the country. Ecko’s homepage: http://unlimitedjustice.com/
Kids suspended for oregano at school, WAVY-TV 10
In Chesapeake, VA, some students are facing expulsion for bringing a bag of oregano to school that looked like a bag of pot.
In Post Racial America Prisons Feast on Black Girls, New America Media
A piece on the problem of mass incarceration facing Black women and girls.
Cage Used To Discipline Students?, WGNO
From a New Orleans charter school, reports that the administration is locking students in a cage as a form of discipline.
Fairfax holds hearings on school discipline policies, The Washington Post
School Board Considers More ‘Holistic’ Approach to Discipline, Fairfax City Patch
In aftermath of student’s suicide, Fairfax board examines discipline practices, The Washington Post
Fairfax School Policy Reviewed After Expulsions, WUSA 9
‘Zero Tolerance’ rule irks parents, ties up school board, WTOP
Fairfax has its school discipline hearing.
Waterbury to hold forum on racial slurs in wake of school play, Republican American
Waterbury, CT is holding a community hearing on racial epithets and school discipline.
Structured recess is paying off in the classroom, Philadelphia Inquirer
In Philly, a “recess coach” has been successful at reducing violence and improving attention.
Zero Tolerance, Zero Sense, TIME
A piece in TIME that applauds BYU for applying its honor code to Brandon Davies, but critiques the zero tolerance policies in place in public schools in light of Nick Stuban’s suicide in Fairfax.
Corporal Punishment Billboard, WCTV
A billboard in Florida is calling attention to the thousands of students who are subjected to corporal punishment every year.
Winnacunnet student suspended for walkout, Seacoast Online
A student in New Hampshire is suspended for leading a walkout in support of Wisconsin teachers.
FCPS Discipline Review Process To Begin Monday, Fort Hunt Patch
The process of reviewing Fairfax, VA’s discipline policies is set to begin on Monday the 14th.
Study shows zero tolerance still rampant in Fla., South Florida Times
The South Florida Sun Times picks up the recent report issued by Advancement Project, the NAACP of Florida, and the ACLU of Florida showing that the new zero-tolerance law has not made enough change in discipline policies.
Elementary school suspensions, ages 4 to 10, jump 76% under Mayor Bloomberg’s control of schools, NY Daily News
The NY Daily News is highlighting the NYCLU’s January study showing that suspensions in Elementary schools are up by 76% since Mayor Bloomberg took control of the schools – and that students of color and students with disabilities are the most impacted.
School Dean Accused Of Flipping Off Students, WTSP 10
In Florida, a middle school dean flipped off his students.
Marc Ecko Launches ‘Unlimited Justice’ Campaign To End Corporal Punishment In Schools, The Huffington Post
Marc Ecko joins the fight against corporal punishment.
Rethink school discipline policies, say lawmakers, students and activists, The Denver Post
No good choices for discipline study, Education News Colorado
Coverage of the recent hearing on the effort by Padres & Jovenes Unidos in Denver to end the criminalization of youth in Colorado. Denver Post has a good piece that frames the problem clearly, while EdNews Colorado looks more closely at the bill itself.
Man taped crying student into chair, turned him upside down, cops say, Orlando Sentinel
A story from Florida, where a 5-year old boy who was crying was taped to his chair and held upside down as punishment in an after-school program.
House approves bill to stop student paddling as discipline in NM public schools, The Republic
The New Mexico House approved a bill that would end corporal punishment in NM.
Muncie schools revamp security plan, WISH TV
In Muncie, Indiana, a new security plan gives police officers more authority in schools, and the result is more student arrest.
New programs proving more effective than traditional discipline at Phillipsburg Middle School, The Express-Times
From Phillipsburg, NJ, a story about a middle school taking steps to change its school culture from punitive to supportive.
Thousands of students still take their licks in Texas schools, Star-Telegram
The Fort Worth Star Telegram has an in depth report looking at the ongoing practice of corporal punishment in Texas schools.
Huntsville Elementary School Racks Up Third of District Discipline Reports, WHNT News 19
More from Huntsville, where newly released data shows that one elementary school is responsible for 1/3 of all elementary discipline.
NYC’s Fight to Save Schools, The Indypendent
The dropout rate in NYC is so bad that more than 2,000 parents, teachers, and students are protesting to keep a failing school open because its better than many of its competitors.
Opinions/Editorials
Deoborah Fowler: How to break racial disparities-discipline cycle, The Dallas Morning News
From Dallas, an op-ed discussing racial disparities in school discipline and how to break them down.
Boy culture not a fit with school system, Centre Daily Times
A columnist argues that “boy culture” does not fit within the strictures of modern schools.
McGinty’s Mailbag: School Discipline Policies, Kaine
Channel 9 reports back about its facebook mailbag on the Fairfax story.
School Treats Teen on Acne Meds Like a Kid Selling Heroin, The Stir
Another outraged piece calling out the seven week suspension of a student in Virginia for bringing prescription acne medication to school.
5 Myths about zero-tolerance disciplinary policies, The Washington Post
Valerie Strauss at the WaPo’s Answer Sheet publishes the APA’s responses to five myths about zero tolerance.
Stop ticketing the schoolchildren of Texas, The Houston Chronicle
A powerful op-ed by a Texas State Senator calling on schools, districts, and police around the state to stop ticketing youth for minor misbehavior in school. The author makes the essential point that it sounds ridiculous to give out tickets for doodling on a desk or disrupting class, but it is happening all over the place.
Obamas Focus on Antibullying Efforts, The New York Times
Obama talks about bullying at the White House.
Study Links Pupils’ Stress to School Environments, Education Week
A study shows that school environments (bad facilities, few resources, etc.) can lead to student stress, which hurts achievement and created discipline issues.
Commentary: Corporal punishment has no place in Texas schools, Star-Telegram
From Texas, a commentary arguing that corporal punishment has no place in Texas schools
Inquirer Editorial: Attach school violence, Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer wants Philly to crack down on school violence.
Chivalry Was Murdered by Zero Tolerance, reason.com
A student in Virginia is suspended for being chivalrous.
‘The New Jim Crow,’ Macon.com
A good overview of Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow,” which discusses how mass incarceration, fueled by the War on Drugs, has become the new Jim Crow. The School-to-Prison Pipeline is one of its many faces.
Parental involvement could reduce suspensions, Winston-Salem Journal
Misguided op-ed from an African-American teacher who implies that students of color really do behave more badly than White students, resulting in higher suspension rates.
Week of March 4, 2011
Study shows zero tolerance still rampant in Fla., The Miami Herald
In Florida, the Miami Herald covers the new report by Advancement Project, the NAACP of Florida, and the ACLU of Florida. The report exposes that, despite the 2009 law intended to cut back on zero tolerance policies, zero tolerance policies are still in place and youth are still being arrested for minor misbehavior.
Huntsville Citizen Responds To DOJ Letter, Blasts Claims of Racism, WHNT 19
An angry Huntsville citizen responds arguing that there’s been no intentional discrimination, suggesting that students of color deserved to be disciplined more.
Fairfax suicide prompts Va. task force on school discipline, The Washington Examiner
The situation if Fairfax, VA has prompted a state lawmaker to launch a state task force on school discipline policies.
School lobbied to stop electronic shock ban, The Boston Globe
A school in Massachusetts spent thousands of dollars to lobby to defeat a ban on using electric shocks to discipline youth.
Discipline Report On Hunstville Schools: Feds Say Racially Imbalanced, WHNT 19
Another story highlighting the DOJ’s finding that racial disparities persist in Huntsville, AL.
Soldiers drafted into schools in discipline crackdown, The Telegraph
In the UK, soldiers are being brought into the classroom to control youth.
8-year-old’s arrest at school prompts questions about involving police, Orlando Sentinel
In Florida, the arrest of an 8 year old with disabilities is re-raising the issue of how, whether, and when police should involve themselves in school discipline.
School Board to Review Disciplinary Process, Oakton Patch
The Fairfax school board will review its discipline policies.
Punishment a major reason for increasing school drop outs, Scoop
From Pakistan, a study showing that the use of corporal punishment leads to school dropouts – it’s the same here with harsh discipline.
Virginia teen’s death prompts Maryland to review zero tolerance policies, ABC 2 News
ABC 2 picks up the story about Maryland reviewing its policies in response.
Opinions/Editorials
Editorial: Poverty is root cause of racial disparities in school discipline, The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News has an editorial that looks at the troubling ongoing racial disparities in school discipline in Dallas and Texas as a whole. The piece rebuts the idea that students of color “act out” more or “deserve” more punishment, but then goes on to blame disparities on poverty and problems in the home. This, too, provides too much of an excuse to schools employing policies that create and exacerbate structural racism. We have to face up to the truth, there is ongoing injustice in our schools.
Arresting an 8-year-old, 5 times, for in-school outbursts is a cop-out, The Los Angeles Times
The LATimes takes a closer look at the arrest of an 8 year old in Florida. The columnist argues that arresting an 8-year-old shows that the schools are not doing their jobs.
Examiner Local Editorial: ‘Zero Tolerance’ policies do lasting damage, The Washington Examiner
An editorial looking at the situation in Fairfax in the Washington Examiner.
Ragland: Discipline disparity among racial lines should wake up black parents, The Dallas Morning News
In the same paper, columnist James Ragland points out that the disparities are an outrage and then calls on Black parents to stand up and demand accountability and change from the district.
Moms Debate ‘Zero Tolerance’ Rules In High School, npr
NPR’s Tell Me More picks up the Fairfax story.
Zero-tolerance rules, including gun control, often make little sense, Great Falls Tribune
From Montana, a column arguing that zero tolerance approaches, in discipline and elsewhere don’t work.
MomsTalk: FCPS Zero Tolerance Policy, Huntington-Belle Haven Patch
“Mom’s Talk” discusses the issue locally.
