The Contribution of Schools to Student Suspension: A Value Added Approach

• In Event: 47.056 - The Social Context and Structural Inequalities of School Discipline Policies

Abstract

Suspension rates are an important accountability metric for schools since exclusionary discipline is associated with a host of negative consequences. In this study, we apply a framework based on value added methodology frequently applied to student test scores in order to identify schools that lead to lower or high suspension frequency. With student-level panel data from a mid-sized urban school district, we implement a student fixed effects approach with school-level indicators to assess if the school a student attends is associated with a higher or lower likelihood of being suspended. We find that, for the most part, student suspension frequency is unrelated to the school they attend with a few exceptions. We will extend this framework to investigate discipline disproportionality.

Authors

• Samantha L Viano, George Mason University

• Benjamin W. Fisher, University of Louisville

• Chris Curran, University of Maryland - Baltimore County

• Francis A Pearman, University of Pittsburgh

• Joseph H. Gardella, Vanderbilt University