Texas schools suspended tens of thousands of students in second grade or younger, report says
by Sydney Greene, Texas Tribune
Texas schools issued more than 64,000 in-school suspensions to students in second grade or younger during the 2015-16 school year, and a disproportionate number of those students were black, male, in foster care or in special education, according to a report released Monday by a children's advocacy group.
The report by Texans Care for Children also said that more than 36,000 students received out-of-school suspensions during that time. The following year, lawmakers passed a bill that banned out-of-school suspensions for students up to the second grade.
In-school suspensions are still allowed under the new law, and advocates said Monday that more needs to be done to address the issue.
Schools are suspending little kids as young as four years old, many of whom are in a classroom for the first time in their lives, Texans Care for Children CEO Stephanie Rubin said in a statement. Suspending our youngest students interrupts their education, communicates to them that they dont belong, and misses a critical opportunity to actually address why they might be acting out.
Read more:
https://www.texastribune.org/2018/03/26/texas-youngest-public-school-students-still-risk-suspensions-report-sa/