Out-of-school suspensions are indicative of gaps in supportive services that must be present to ensure students have the necessary supports to thrive and succeed. Social emotional learning drives down high rates of suspension, expulsion, class disruptions and chronic absenteeism and improves school safety
Suspensions
Posted inCT Viewpoints
Giving young offenders a second chance means system-wide reform
Early in my time as superintendent in New London, staff at one of our schools found a young teen nearly unconscious from a substance overdose, an empty bottle next to him. He had tried to commit suicide. Technically he should have been suspended and then expelled for a series of violations of district policies. But […]
Posted inCT Viewpoints
East Hartford taking on racial disparity in school discipline
Studies show that implicit racial bias is widespread in the U.S. They also show that it can be checked more effectively if we are made aware of our tendencies to be biased. By raising awareness of the problem of disproportionate minority contact, the ongoing dialogues in East Hartford can help adults to make fairer decisions regarding students and youth.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
In Connecticut, there is no ‘achievement gap’
Before students of all colors can succeed equally in Connecticut’s public schools, we must be bluntly honest about why disparities exist. An achievement gap would exist if we gave every student equal opportunities and some children still failed to achieve. In a myriad ways, we do not give all our children the same opportunities. Nowhere is this more apparent than in school discipline policies that exclude children from the classroom.