NAACP Legal Defense Fund Applauds Introduction of Bipartisan Bill to Reform Approaches to School Discipline
Posted By The Editors | October 12th, 2011 (1 hour ago) | Category: Education | No Comments »
Print This PostWashington, D.C. – Today, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (“LDF”) joined other civil rights and education groups in supporting introduction of the Positive Behavior for Safe and Effective Schools Act (PBSESA) – a bill to fund positive, preventative approaches to discipline in U.S. schools. The bipartisan bill, sponsored by U.S. Representatives Danny Davis (D, IL -7th), Todd Platts (R, PA- 19th), Bobby Scott (D, VA-3rd), and Chris Murphy (D, CT-5th), focuses on alternatives to harsh and exclusionary discipline, and highlights School-Wide Positive Behavior Supports (“SWPBS”) as an appropriate use of funds under several titles of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). An earlier version of the bill was introduced by then-Senator Barack Obama in 2007.
SWPBS, an evidence-based approach to school discipline, has been shown to reduce disciplinary referrals, improve school attendance rates, support gains in academic achievement, and improve teacher perceptions of safety and morale. Over 10,000 U.S. schools have adopted SWPBS to improve school discipline and support a healthy learning environment – with marked results. For example, Alton Middle School, the third largest school in Illinois, which has utilized SWPBS since 2007, has recorded a 32 percent drop in disciplinary referrals; a 26 percent drop in suspensions; and marked decrease in racial disparities in discipline between students of color and their white peers.
“Support for practices like SWPBS could not come at a more critical time,” said Eric Gonzalez, Education Policy Advocate for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. “Our nation’s discipline rates are at
