July - 2017

END ZERO TOLERANCE

COMBATING THE SCHOOL-TO-PRISON PIPELINE

A Breakthrough in Discipline Reform for Early Learners

A Breakthrough in Discipline Reform for Early Learners

Zafar Shah remembers being called to his son Zakir’s school. As a new parent to the school system, he was embarrassed and apologetic, but did not know much about disciplinary procedures. He arrived and was told that his son had assaulted a teacher by throwing a chair. Alarmed, he asked for the details of the situation. After all, his son needed assistance carrying his backpack to school, so he wondered how he’d thrown a chair. Staff admitted that he had pushed the chair over

Pittsburgh Parents Demand Change to Stop School Pushout

Pittsburgh Parents Demand Change to Stop School Pushout

On June 19, 2017, Pittsburgh Public Schools took important first steps toward limiting out-of-school suspension for early learners, pre-K through fifth grade. These actions might not have taken place without the organizing work of the Education Rights Network, a parent-led organization that works to achieve disability and racial equity in Pittsburgh Public Schools. At the meeting, the school board formed a working group to develop a definition of “non-violent minor disciplina

Why Restorative Justice?

Why Restorative Justice?

I remember my high school back in Chicago taking a zero-tolerance approach to discipline. Every rule infraction was punished with at least one demerit. If a student received four demerits within a two-week span, he or she was given a detention. As those days have faded into the past, I’ve come to wonder whether this approach was the best way to create a safe and supportive school environment. I learned a lot more about the school discipline experiences of other youth during m

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