California isn’t the only state where parents are concerned about harsh rules like willful defiance. In yet another example of the arbitrary nature of ‘willful defiance’, last week, a 7-year-old boy was suspended for biting his pop-tart pastry into the shape of a gun. This follows a trend of young children suspended for pointing their fingers ... Read More
Are you an educator, student, parent, concerned community member, student advocate or school administrator? Do you care about helping students stay in school and preventing unnecessary suspensions and expulsions? You have an opportunity to make a difference by sending a letter of support to legislators for Assembly Bill 420. AB 420 will limit the use of ... Read More
Sarah Omojola joined Public Counsel in September 2012. She is a former English teacher and co-founder of a Stand Up For Each Other, an organization that provides advocacy services for students facing disciplinary action in New Orleans. She now works with Public Counsel and Fix School Discipline on policy and advocacy relating to stopping the school-to-prison pipeline. Sarah ... Read More
Learn lessons from successful educators and find out how to make positive school discipline changes at your school. California educators, community organizations and students are rolling up their sleeves to make common-sense school discipline changes. Many are already reporting amazing results: more students in class and learning, fewer behavioral problems on campus, fewer suspensions and ... Read More
Central Valley students and educators have launched a new discipline program that is changing their schools for the better. STRIVE, a program through Merced County Office of Education, harnesses the power of conflict resolution to work with students and teachers to cut down on suspensions and keep students in class. When a problem arises, students ... Read More
Assemblyman Roger Dickinson has introduced a bill that would limit the use of the broadest category of student suspensions: “willful defiance.” California data shows that more than 40% of out-of-school suspensions are for this one area, and more Latino and African American students are held out of school for “willfully defying” authorities than other students. ... Read More
Retired California Superior Court Judge Leonard Edwards has seen the results of high suspensions and expulsions, and he knows there’s a better way. In an oped in the San Jose Mercury News he writes that “suspensions and expulsions are not necessary.” He cites the example of Garfield High in East Los Angeles, which reduced its ... Read More
Did you know that 14 school-age children are murdered every day in the U.S.? And 2 out of 3 children saw violence last year? California students are demanding a plan to end violence against young people in a new 1-minute video from Health Happens Here that has already been watched more than 1 million times. ... Read More
This year the state of California adopted 5 school-discipline-related laws. These new laws will make a difference in your schools and classrooms — but it’s going to be up to us to help implement them. Here are some resources to help community members and educators work together to make these changes a reality. Explore the ... Read More
A brand new law to help reduce suspensions and expulsions of foster youth goes into effect in January. But Elk Grove Unified, located in Sacramento County, has applied the principles of AB 1909 early and is already seeing positive results. Foster youth are being suspended 69% less often in 2010-2011 compared to 2009-2010, EdSource reports. ... Read More
