Racial Disparities in School Discipline Deny Minority Students Equal Access to Education

BALTIMORE— Dr. Russell Skiba, co-director of the Safe and Responsive Schools Project in Bloomington, Indiana, will speak about the disproportionate impact of school discipline policies on minority students and boys at an Open Society Institute-Baltimore forum on Tuesday, November 18, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Dr. Skiba, an award winning researcher, is the co-author of a number of reports about school discipline, including: Zero Tolerance, Zero Evidence: An Analysis of School Disciplinary Practice and The Color of Discipline: Sources of Racial and Gender Disproportionality in School Punishment.

One of the critical issues in school discipline is the overrepresentation of students of color in school exclusion. For instance, in Baltimore County, African-American students comprise less that 34 percent of the student body, but account for 54 percent of the suspensions, according to data from the Maryland Department of Education. Studies by Dr. Skiba and others show that minority students—especially those who are male—are expelled and suspended more often than non-minority students. Such significant racial disparities in school discipline are evident even after controlling for socioeconomic status.

In addition, many of the young people are discouraged from coming back to school after their suspensions are over, leaving them without a degree and severely limiting their options for the future.

“Racially-biased discipline policies are threatening minority students’ access to education,” Dr. Skiba said. “It is important that we stop relying on popular one-size-fits-all discipline policies, which disadvantage students of color.”

Advocates, policymakers and representatives from the school and juvenile justice systems are expected to attend the forum and will stay afterward to discuss how to improve the current discipline system. Dr. Skiba will share insights from successful programs used in other school districts to correct the disproportionate targeting of minority students.

“It is very important to recognize the potential for institutional bias in our school system,” says Aurie Hall, OSI-Baltimore Criminal Justice Program officer. “We cannot turn a blind eye to the consequences of our discipline policies on Baltimore’s minority children.”

This forum a part of the ongoing 2003-4 School Discipline Policies and their Criminal Justice Consequences forum series.