Disability Advocates Concerned By Plan To Axe School Discipline Guidance
A Trump administration school safety commission is recommending that federal officials rescind Obama-era guidance aimed at ensuring that minorities and students with disabilities aren’t unfairly disciplined.
In a 180-page report released Tuesday, the Federal Commission on School Safety said that the 2014 guidance issued jointly by the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Justice should be abandoned.
The guidance outlined how schools should work to ensure that discipline isn’t administered in a way that disproportionately affects students from certain groups, noting that federal law prohibits “discriminatory discipline” based on race, disability and other factors.
The recommendation this week comes from a panel established by President Donald Trump following the shooting in February at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. The commission, chaired by Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, was tasked with recommending steps to improve school safety.At the time, the Obama administration highlighted statistics showing that kids in special education represented just 12 percent of students across the country, but accounted for about 20 percent of suspensions and expulsions and almost a quarter of school-related arrests.
“The commission is deeply troubled that the guidance, while well-intentioned, may have paradoxically contributed to making schools less safe,” the commission said in its report. “Significant concerns also remain regarding the legal framework upon which the guidance is based. These concerns, together with the repeated concerns expressed by many that disciplinary decisions are best left in the hands of classroom teachers and administrators, CONTINUE READING: Disability Advocates Concerned By Plan To Axe School Discipline Guidance - Disability Scoop
