It is increasingly clear to all Americans what Black communities have known for generations: Systemic racism not only persists throughout our institutions, laws, and policies, but it . Less evident, however, is that the overpolicing and systemic racism we see playing out in the streets, has occurred for decades in our public school system鈥攆rom a 6-year-old being to a 12-year-old being suspended for .
As school boards across the country鈥攊ncluding in ; ; , N.Y.; ; Portland, Ore.; and 鈥攎ove to sever ties with police departments, the goal must be broader than merely removing police. Police-free schools alone do not equal safe and healthy learning environments.
As schools prepare to reopen during the age of COVID-19, they must address another public health crisis: the deep-rooted and racialized practice of exclusionary school discipline, which includes suspensions, expulsions, and referrals to law enforcement. More than 45 years of research proves this approach to discipline not only is ineffective in achieving intended goals (maintaining classroom order and safety and preventing future 鈥渕isbehaviors鈥�) but also has for decades exacerbated intergenerational trauma and health and economic disparities faced by Black families and communities.
Research illustrates the chilling similarities between children who experience exclusionary school discipline and adults with post-traumatic stress disorder."
Calls to end racialized school discipline practices are not new. In 1975, the found that Black students were suspended at twice the rate of white students because of 鈥減ervasive school intolerance for children who are different.鈥� In 2018, the confirmed that race remained the persistent driver of discipline disproportionality. Exclusionary school discipline pushes Black students out of classrooms at rates higher than their white peers regardless of types of punishment, types of school, or levels of poverty. And it starts early: to be suspended.
Governors, state school boards, and local school districts must take decisive action to implement an immediate moratorium on exclusionary school discipline in all schools. Such a moratorium is the first step in ending a legacy of educational racism that threatens community health and well-being. Offering trauma-informed supports and resources to students, teachers, and families is equally important.
Whenever students return to their classrooms, they will be carrying particularly heavy burdens of trauma on their shoulders. Without these positive interventions, the effects of the pandemic will leave a lasting mark on the very , impeding their ability to focus, learn, or cope with stress.
illustrates the chilling similarities between children who experience exclusionary school discipline and adults with post-traumatic stress disorder. In addition to the negative psychological impacts, this approach to discipline decreases students鈥� likelihood of high school graduation鈥攁 key marker of educational attainment, which is tied directly to , and . By age 25, those with a high school degree can expect to live years longer than those without one.
Finally, exclusionary school discipline is the steppingstone to the school-to-prison pipeline. Youth incarceration has devastating during adolescence and adulthood. Each of these individual outcomes of exclusionary school discipline is a public-health issue, but cumulatively, they represent an undeniable public-health crisis.
When Black students return to classrooms, they will unequivocally need support, not punishment. Failing to do so will not only repeat a long history of oppression and harm but further fuel health inequities. Schools cannot afford to make the same mistakes with COVID-19 that , when trauma was misinterpreted and 鈥渢reated鈥� with strict consequences for even the slightest infractions. Students were punished for wearing the wrong kind of socks to class, not sitting up, or even talking in the hallways. Instead of asking, 鈥淲hat has happened to this child?鈥� school officials asked, 鈥淲hat鈥檚 wrong with this child?鈥�
Issuing a nationwide moratorium on exclusionary school discipline is a critical protection for children coping with unprecedented trauma. It will also support school staff so that they do not unintentionally misinterpret the symptoms of trauma and turn to punitive measures. We must remember that school staff鈥攚ho have been asked to take on a number of different roles and responsibilities during this pandemic鈥攁re also navigating unparalleled stresses, anxieties, and grief, both personally and professionally.
Dismantling the deeply entrenched roots of racism will require local and national educational policy changes to ensure these practices become permanent. Education leaders are not in this alone. Public-health and medical communities鈥攖hat understand the negative impacts of on children and young people鈥檚 healthy development as well as the 鈥攁re critical partners in developing school-based policy and practice solutions. Many in public health (including local health departments) and medicine are already stepping up to provide guidance to schools grappling with how to safely reopen and address the physical, social, and emotional needs of staff, students, and families.
The work of health justice in schools is vital. The recent wave of demonstrations has made clear that radical change is possible when we come together and lend ourselves to a broader movement. As author James Baldwin eloquently reminded us, 鈥淣ot everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.鈥� We cannot miss the opportunity presented by these extraordinary times for real and transformative change in schools.
