Nationally, over 2.8 million children are suspended across the United States. Among suspended students, students of color, students with disabilities, and students from low socio-economic backgrounds are disproportionately suspended.
To address high disproportionate suspensions, schools across the nation are implementing multi-tiered interventions such as restorative justice practices and positive behavior intervention systems. While overall suspensions are commonly reduced, disproportional suspensions of minoritized students often remain. In this webinar, we will (1) describe factors that continue to maintain the discipline gap, (2) discuss the need for trauma-informed and anti-racist practices, and (3) offer how to integrate trauma-informed practices and critical race frameworks into existing school-wide interventions such as restorative practices, and (4) discuss implications for school social work practice.
Learning Objectives:
1. To describe the prevalence of high and racially disproportional school suspensions
2. To discuss the relationship between school suspensions and adverse childhood experiences
3. To demonstrate the integration of trauma-informed practices and race consciousness into restorative practices.