Predicting School-Level Disparities in Suspension: A National Analysis of All Census-Designated Racial/Ethnic Student Groups

• In Event: 47.054 - Analyzing Equity and Equality in School Safety and Discipline

Abstract

Racial/ethnic disparities in school discipline are pervasive and well-documented. The purpose of this study is to comprehensively examine where students of color (SOCs) may be particularly vulnerable to selection for discipline by modelling the school-level suspension gap between Whites and all six US Census designated student groups of color using large, nationally representative samples. Findings show that inequitable suspension is more acute and widespread than previously documented. The study’s conceptual framework foregrounds how structural racism and perceptions of intergroup threat serve to deny historically marginalized youth the full benefit of public education. Results can help identify reforms aimed at more equitable discipline outcomes, where to implement reforms, and how stakeholders might avoid the harm caused by racialized discipline practices.

Author

• Nicholas Paul Triplett, University of North Carolina - Charlotte