ARCHIVED ARTICLES

Week of May 28, 2010

Juvenile panel airs its report, Times Leader
The panel investigating the cash for kids juvenile court scandal in Pennsylvania has released its report and recommendations.

LAUSD students demand dignity in schools, The South Los Angeles Report
Students in Los Angeles protest continuing harsh discipline and truancy policies and call for better treatment.  The youth and organizers pointed to lack of respect for students as a root of the problem.

Dealing With Discipline at CCISD, KRIS 6 News
The Corpus Christie, TX schools hold a “civil behavior summit” to address school discipline problems.

Conservator will oversee charter school, Houston Chronicle
The state takes over the Texas charter school where the recent student beating was videotaped.

Middle School Guidance Cuts Upset Many, ArlingtonPatch
Parents and teachers upset with cuts to guidance in Arlington, MA draw a connection between poor guidance and school discipline problems.

Bias Seen in ‘Police-on-Police’ Shootings, The New York Times
This is an interesting study of implicit racial bias in police through the lens of police on police shootings – it finds, unsurprisingly, that race plays a role in whether a police officer perceives another person as a threat.  This is very relevant in schools, where police are constantly making judgment calls about who is “dangerous” and needs to be arrested or removed from school.

Little tolerance on zero tolerance, The Valdosta Daily Times
Valdosta Daily Times – emphasizing the role of individual horror stories in pushing the legislation forward.

“Common Sense” Trumps “Zero Tolerance” in Georgia, WDEF News 12
Local TV – again looking at individual horror stories as the impetus for the bill.

New law eases zero-tolerance penalties, Times Georgian
The Times Georgian – emphasizing that schools will still be “tough” on weapons in school.

Governor Signs Weapons-In-School Bill, 11 Alive
Governor Purdue signs Georgia’s new zero tolerance law.  The law is only a very small step, but it is a step in the right direction.

Huberman claims progress in creating “culture of calm” in schools, Catalyst Chicago
In Chicago, Huberman claims some success in reducing violence in schools.

New Program Brings School Safety Agents’ Attackers To Justice, NY1
Bad news in New York, where the police commissioner is announcing a new plan to prosecute youth who attack School Safety Agents in school to the “full extent of the law.”  Far too often these “attacks” are either overblown or entirely fabricated.  Moreover, the City Council has killed an attempt by organized youth around the city to hold those same School Safety Agents accountable for their conduct in the negotiations over the School Safety Act.  This is classic “law and order” politics at the expense of youth.

Potential Changes to District 205’s Discipline Code, mystateline.com
A school district on the border of Wisconsin and Illinois is considering eliminating knee jerk harsh discipline for weapons in school.

Fake fight, real consequences? Chaska High weighs discipline, Star Tribune
Students in Minnesota staged a mock fight as a statement about a supposed “gang” incident last year – and may face discipline for it.

One Nation Under Arrest: The End of the Pocket Knife, The Foundry
This piece from the Heritage Foundation is a great example of the unity between progressives and conservatives in their opposition to zero tolerance policies and school arrests.

Minority students suspended at higher rates, Santa Monica Daily Press
A report on ongoing racial disparities in school discipline in Santa Monica California.

Mother files for damages after drug search, The Ledger Independent
A parent in Brooksville, KY is suing the school for emotional damages done to her daughter during a drug sweep with a drug-sniffing dog.

Opinions/Editorials

Teacher suspended for teaching about the Constitution in a Senior Government Class, DrugWarRant.com
Teachers in Virginia were disciplined for giving students materials on how to behave if they are stopped by the police

Prevention of bullying is important, but after it happens, the discipline must be swift and strong, Thousand Oaks Acron
This piece advocating harsh punishment for bullies is a good example of the danger of the current “anti-bullying” rhetoric in the press.  Bullying is a symptom of deep problems in a school culture, and simply “cracking down” on bullies does nothing to address the root causes.

New Study Shows Racial Bias in the Courtroom, Criminal Justice
This is another study showing that the racial bias of jurors helps determine the guilt or innocence of a defendant in the courtroom.  Again, this shows that the supposedly “unbiased” assessments of school officials must be questioned and helps expose the racial biases that flow beneath the surface of so many institutional decisions.

Drug-sniffing dogs show students they’re ‘ruff and ready, ctpost.com
An example of our prison-like approach to schools from Seymour, CT where drug sniffing dogs descended on the high school.

Zero tolerance can make zero sense, The Morning Call
A columnist in Kutztown, PA speaks out against rigid and unreasonable zero tolerance policies.

Does imposing school codes of conduct 24/7 go too far? Yes, APP.com
An op-ed from the Jersey Shore against extending school discipline beyond the limits of the school building and day.

Let’s think again, Times Union
A student in Albany NY was recently suspended for wearing rosary beads to school because they might encourage “gang activity.”

 

Week of May 21, 2010

Rewarding good behavior, The Daily Citizen
A report on the effectiveness of PBIS from Dalton, GA.

Wanted: English Teacher, New York Post
20 students at a school in New York City for students who have been suspended from other schools have been without an English teacher for the entire year.  This kind of abandonment of the “troublemakers” is emblematic of our test and punish system.

Harlem Charter School Under Investigation For Discipline Policy, NY1
A charter school in Harlem in NYC is under investigation for reported violent school discipline.

Grier changes mind on disciplinary unit, Houston Chronicle
After threatening to cut ties with a  private contractor running alternative schools, Houston, TX has decided to keep the relationship going.

Growing number of area expulsions raises questions, WQOW 18
A growing number of expulsions in Chippewa Falls, WI is raising some red flags.

School District may revisit drug suspension policy, Gulf Breeze News
A district in Gulf Breeze, Florida is reconsidering its drug policy after students who admitted past possession of marijuana at school were expelled.

Food fight ends with arrest, Telegram & Gazette
A student at Hudson High School near Worcester, MA was arrested for his role in a food fight at the school.

Students, parents march to district headquarters protesting administrators, 9News.com
Students at West High School in Denver walked out of school in protest over discipline abuses and lack of respect from the administration.

Student injured by chair-wielding sub, The Washington Post
A substitute teacher has been banned from a DC charter school for throwing a chair at a seventh grader.

Lawmakers Look To Have Schools Discipline For Cyber-Bullying, NBC4i
Ohio state legislators are considering legislation that would allow schools to discipline students for cyber-bullying that occurs outside of school grounds and school hours.

Hit It Or Quit It’s A Hit With Us, Chicagoist
Chicagoist highlights Blocks Together, a local group committed to restorative justice to combat the school-to-prison pipeline.

Opinions/Editorials

Should Zero Tolerance Apply to Those with Autism? GA Boy Faces Charges for Threatening Drawing., Age of Autism
More commentary on the autistic student who was charged with “terroristic” activities for drawing a stick figure with a gun.

Your Views: What became of paddle and school discipline?, al.com
A misguided op-ed from a retired, “old school” teacher who favors paddling kids.

Models of loyalty to the city, Detroit Free Press
An op-ed about Detroit’s declining population mentions the school-to-prison pipeline, showing how mainstream the term has become.

Zero tolerance: Creating the path from lockout to dropout, The Huntsville Item
From Huntsville, TX, a good op-ed tracing the path from “lockout to dropout.”

Hair pick incident riles students at Guilford High School, New Haven Register
In Guilford, CT, a school administrator disciplined a student for refusing to remove his hairpick – sparking a wave of student and parent protest.

I don’t condone, but understand teacher frustration, The Dallas Morning News
In a letter to the editor, a reader say she understands why a teacher would be so frustrated that she would beat a student who just been beating another student.  No amount of frustration makes beating a student understandable, and beating a student is not necessary when breaking up a fight.

 

Week of May 14, 2010

School expulsions hit minorities, special ed students hardest, The Education Front Blog
In Dallas, a reporter picks up on Texas Appleseed’s new report showing that expulsions hit students of color and special ed students hardest.

Seclusion, restraints could be out, severely limited in schools, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
More good news from Georgia, where new rules being considered by the Board of Education would ban seclusion rooms and severely limit physical restraints.

Fairmont suspensions bring up debate, La Voz Nueva
More in-depth reporting on the suspension of students in Denver, Colorado after they wore Mexican flags at recess on Cinco de Mayo.

Teacher-Beats-Student Video; Allegedly Lashed out After Student Teased Girl, CBS News
In Houston, a teacher was caught beating up a student in front of class – on film.

Autistic Boy Charged with Making Terroristic Threats in Stick Figure Drawing, MyFox Atlanta
In Georgia, an autistic boy was suspended and charged with a felony for a drawing that the school interpreted as “terroristic” because one stick figure was holding a gun.

Zero tolerance ineffective in schools, MSU study finds, Media Newswire
A recent Michigan State report finds that zero tolerance policies are not effective and fail to make students feel safe.

Wake school case has implications for Beaufort, Beaufort Observer
The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction has determined that the Wake County Schools violated the rights of special education students who were suspended from school for more than 10 days.

School Hopes ‘Recess Coach’ Will Pay Off in Classroom, ABC News
A school in Little Rock, Arkansas is trying to cut down on discipline problems at recess by hiring a “recess coach” to provide structure.

Paddling crusader loses substitute teaching job at Dallas school, The Dallas Morning News
A substitute teacher in Dallas who was advocating for a return to paddling in schools has lost his job.

Wheatland High officials at odds about discipline, appealdemocrat.com
In California, an assistant principal has been placed on leave for criticizing his high school and advocating for a discipline crack-down.

DISD leaders don’t support reviving paddling, The Dallas Morning News
Dallas school officials are against bringing back paddling.

Parents upset over school discipline, wibv.com
Parents in Buffalo, NY are speaking out against the overuse of suspensions in the schools.

Civil Justice Clinic reaches settlement in federal lawsuit against Saint Louis Public Schools, Washington University in St. Louis
A law clinic at the Washington University Law School in St. Louis, in partnership with legal aid, has settled a lawsuit stemming from the discipline of two students.

Zero Tolerance for Junk Food at Lunch Puts Girl in School Detention for Week, ABA Journal
A third grader in Brazos, TX has been given detention for eating a jolly rancher because the district loses state funding when students eat “minimal nutrition” foods

Students Take Aim At Suspensions, New Haven Independent
Students in New Haven, Connecticut speak out against the district’s over use of suspensions.  They recommend consistent, fair, and reasonable discipline and a better school culture – and they demand that youth be part of the process of change.

In today’s paper: Balancing discipline, safety in schools, rrstar.com
An article from Rockford, Illinois following up on the district’s decision this year to institute new guidelines to limit student arrests.

Student suspensions series – Part I, The State Journal
An article from Frankford, KY examining the high suspension rate there.

Iowa teacher on leave after wrongfully disciplining student, WQAD.com
A teacher in Iowa who tied a student to a chair as a “joke” is facing discipline herself.

Zero Tolerance’ is changing, WALB News 10

The bill in Georgia that would limit zero tolerance policies and take steps to keep youth out of the criminal justice system has become law.  This is a small step, but great news.

Opinions/Editorials

Young: From school to prison, statesman.com
A very good op-ed from Austin, Texas about the harsh juxtaposition of high school graduation and the students warehoused in alternative schools.  The author argues that we are doing little more than grooming youth for prison.

Home truths, Houston Chronicle
The Houston Chronicle criticizes Texas for using home schooling to hide dropouts.

When adults hit kids at school, The Washington Post
A blog post from the Washington Post discussing the video of a teacher beating a student in Houston and noting that in many schools corporal punishment is still legal and common.

Kuhens: Finding alternative measures for students who break rules, knoxnews.com
A piece from Knoxville, TN advocating for more flexible alternatives to suspension.

Troubles at school lead S.A. juveniles to court, Express-News
San Antonio is going to devote one judge to only juvenile cases as a response to a surge in referrals under the city’s zero tolerance policy.

Don’t put up with bad behavior, Indystar.com
An overzealous principal in Indiana decided to suspend more than 50 students to send a message that he was tough on discipline.

Cinco de Mayo suspensions a mixed message?, examiner.com
A Denver school has suspended 17 students after they wore Mexican flags at recess.  This piece points out that the timing is notable because DPS just proclaimed a boycott on Arizona for its draconian immigration law.

223,190 Kids Legally Beaten in US Schools, The Huffington Post
A piece in the Huffington Post speaks out against corporal punishment and calls for reform.

 

Week of May 7, 2010

Prosecutions of juveniles decline; advocates in Lucas County credit behavior coaching, Toledo Blade
A story from Lucas County, Ohio documents the decrease in prosecutions of juvenile offenders and credits some of the gains to a change in culture away from knee-jerk punishment and towards constructive interventions

Lost at School by Dr. Ross Greene
An interesting-looking book about how discipline is an inappropriate and damaging response to troubled youth.

Three largest parties clash over education priorities, BBC
School discipline and education continue to be hotly contested issues in the U.K.’s upcoming election.

Three strikes and you’re…sore: A look at corporal punishment in area schools, The Anniston Star
An article from Calhoun County, AL on the continued use of corporal punishment in school there.

School district defends drug search amid criticism, Springfield News-Leader
A school district in Missouri used dogs to conduct a drug raid in school.  Now they are defending themselves against criticism from the ACLU.

Opinions/Editorials

Schoolyard bullies, The Baltimore Sun
An op-ed in the Baltimore Sun, which argues that out of school suspensions for bullies aren’t helpful and may exacerbate the problem.