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The Impact of Suspension Policies and Programs in an Urban District: Moving Away From Zero Tolerance

Fri, April 28, 8:15 to 9:45am, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 217 C

Abstract

Purposes
This presentation will address the following research questions: (1) Following changes in SDP’s disciplinary policies in 2012-2013, have the overall number of suspension incidents and suspension rates decreased? (2) Are there trends or changes in the type (in-school versus out-of-school), the severity (length), and the reasons (infraction) for suspensions? (3) Are there specific schools where suspension trends are distinct from the district-wide trends? (4) If so, are there any policies or programs that may explain these anomalies? This presentation will detail the methods and findings of this research.
Theoretical Framework
Exclusion from school has been linked to academic, financial, and social problems due to loss of learning time; increased rate of course failure; increased risk of dropout; ongoing disciplinary issues and involvement with criminal activity; and increased rates of incarceration (Balfanz, Byrnes, & Fox, 2015; Fabelo, Thompson, Plotkin, Carmichael, Marchbanks, & Booth, 2011; Marchbanks, Blake, Booth, Carmichael, Seibert, & Fabelo, 2015; Stearns & Glennie, 2006). Furthermore, research indicates that exclusion from school is not an effective deterrent to further misbehavior (Brooks, Schiraldi, & Ziedenberg, 2000; Finn & Servoss, 2015. The changes in SDP’s policies, and the district’s interest in understanding the impacts of these changes, come in direct response to these findings.

Methods & Data
Researchers examined suspension data from the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 school years. using chi-square and Mann-Whitney U-tests. Further analyses were conducted taking into account the infraction and duration associated with each suspension, and the relationships between disciplinary programming and suspension. Data for these analyses include district suspension data; data from the District’s student, teacher, principal, and parent surveys; and principal interview data about the variety of programming and partners at each school.

Findings
Quantitative analyses completed thus far show that district-wide, the number of suspensions has decreased consistently over the past five years, with a statistically significant decrease in both OSS and ISS from 2013-2014 to 2014-2015 (Table 1). However, while suspensions happened less frequently, when they did occur, they were more likely to be an OSS and tended to be for longer periods of time (Tables 2 and 3). Results showed that suspensions issued for minor and moderate infractions dropped significantly across the two years, while in contrast, suspensions associated with major infractions increased (Table 4). Mixed findings emerged for the relationship between type of suspension and duration depending on the severity of the associated infraction (Table 5). Several schools surfaced where trends were distinct from those found district-wide and further qualitative analyses will be carried out to examine potential explanations.

Significance
This presentation provides an illustrative example of efforts on the part of a large urban school district to examine the impacts of suspension policy. Findings from this work will directly inform SDP’s own efforts in this area, and will support other districts in aligning policies and programs to create safe learning environments for students.

Authors