Friday, October 07, 2011
North Carolina’s school system has had a habit of punishing black students more often than white students who commit the same offenses.
A study released by the National Education Policy Center, a non-partisan source of peer-reviewed research, claimed 32% of black students in North Carolina were given out-of-school suspension for using a cell phone at school.
Less than 15% of white students received the same punishment for breaking the same rule.
When it came to a first-time offense of public display of affection, about 43% of black students were suspended. White students? Again, about 15%.
A similar disparity was uncovered in Texas schools by The Council of State Governments, whose study concluded that black students were 31% more likely to be targeted for discipline than other students.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
New Report Cites Disproportionate Punishment for Black Students (by Susan Ferriss, iWatch News)
Discipline Policies, Successful Schools, and Racial Justice (by Daniel J. Losen, National Education Policy Center) (pdf)
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