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Lawyers’ Committee Submits Testimony to Senate Hearing

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Richard J. Durbin held an important hearing December 12 on “Ending the School-to-Prison Pipeline” before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights. The hearing was designed to expose the deep inequality in disciplinary practices plaguing America’s public schools and its damaging effects on our youth. The phrase “School-to-Prison Pipeline” refers to the practice of pushing students out of the classroom and into the justice system through use of harsh exclusionary discipline policies.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee) and the American Civil Liberties Union were among the groups applauding Durbin for convening the hearing.

Within the past two decades, many schools have increased their reliance on law enforcement officers and exclusionary policies, such as out-of-school suspension and expulsion, as a means of reducing school disruption. As a result, too many of our most vulnerable youth find themselves excluded from the classroom setting, arrested, and/or referred to juvenile court for what might be viewed as common misbehavior. Overrepresentation of students of color and those with disabilities in the pipeline render this a serious civil rights issue.

“The School-to-Prison Pipeline perpetuates the indefensible pattern of incarceration within communities of color, and we urge Congress to take deliberate and forceful action to put a stop to these discriminatory school policies,” said Lawyers’ Committee President and Executive Director Barbara R. Arnwine.

However, despite research confirming that students of color are no more likely to commit offenses requiring removal from school than their white peers, there continues to be strong evidence of disparities in school exclusion for students of color. In particular, according to the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, black students are more than three-and-a-half times more likely to be suspended or expelled than their white peers, and students with disabilities are more than twice as likely as their peers in general education to receive one or more out-of-school suspensions. Additionally, over 70% of students involved in school-related arrests or referred to law enforcement are black or Hispanic.

“We cannot perpetuate the belief that anyone can rise above his or her circumstances regardless of race while simultaneously excluding our most vulnerable youth from an equal opportunity to receive an education,” said Brenda Shum, director of the Lawyers’ Committee’s Educational Opportunities Project.

Not only do these school policies create racial division in the receipt of vital instructional classroom time; these policies have not been proven to have positive effects on learning or the school environment. Moreover, there are alternative forms of addressing misbehavior, such as positive behavior supports, that are less discriminatory and have proven to have tremendous success in schools across the country.

Lawyers’ Committee Public Policy Director Tanya Clay House urges, “We must put a stop to this pernicious practice of excluding our boys and girls of color from the classroom and funneling them into the justice system.”

In order to combat the School-to-Prison Pipeline and ensure equal educational opportunities for all children, the Lawyers’ Committee advocates that federal education reform do the following:

•     Permit the use of ESEA Title I funds to implement school-wide positive behavior supports;

•     Prohibit ESEA funding for exclusionary discipline measures; and

•    Improve accountability by mandating inclusion of school discipline data in ESEA state Report Cards.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (LCCRUL), a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy, is celebrating its 50th anniversary of pursuing its goal of “Moving America Toward Justice.” For more information visit www.lawyerscommittee.org.