About the Addressing Disproportionality in Discipline Alliance
We will conduct an environmental scan of the discipline disparity reduction approaches employed by school districts nationwide that are demographically similar to the 14 Maryland school systems that submitted corrective action plans in 2019—including district codes of conduct, recent policy reforms, prevention strategies and professional development activities. We will use findings from the environmental scan and an Ask-a-RELs to develop content for and deliver a virtual session for Maryland school systems to help operationalize and promote more equitable and supportive enactment of the state’s code of conduct in schools.
1Losen, D. J., & Gillespie, J. (2012). Opportunities suspended: The disparate impact of disciplinary exclusion from school. Los Angeles, CA: Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED534184; Lacoe, J., & Steinberg, M. P. (2019, March). Do suspensions affect student outcomes? Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 41(1), 34–62. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1204837; Gregory, A., Skiba, R. J., & Noguera, P. A. (2010). The achievement gap and the discipline gap: Two sides of the same coin? Educational Researcher, 39(1), 59–68. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ886500; Fabelo, T., Thompson, M. D., Plotkin, M., Carmichael, D., Marchbanks, M. P., & Booth, E. A. (2011). Breaking schools’ rules: A statewide study of how school discipline relates to students’ success and juvenile justice involvement. New York: Council of State Governments Justice Center.; U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2018, March). K-12 education: Discipline disparities for black students, boys, and students with disabilities (Publication No. GAO-18-258). Retrieved from https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-18-258; Barrett, N., McEachin, A., Mills, J., & Valant, J. (2019). Disparities in student discipline by race and family income (EdWorkingPaper No.19-53). Retrieved from the Annenberg Institute at Brown University website: http://edworkingpapers.com/ai19-53
What Stakeholders Say
Identifying Characteristics of Schools with Disproportionate Rates
- Dara Shaw, Maryland State Department of Education
Featured Video
The REL Mid-Atlantic: Addressing Disproportionality in Discipline Alliance
Eliminating Disproportionate Impact: Evidence-based and promising alternatives to exclusionary discipline
REL Mid-Atlantic provided the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) with coaching and consultation to support the implementation of local education agency (LEA) school discipline disproportionality action plans. This presentation sought to help build MSDE's capacity to infuse their ongoing technical assistance to LEAs with new and emerging knowledge of evidence-based approaches and promising practices in place in demographically similar school systems nationwide.
Infographic on understanding discipline disparities in Maryland (408 KB)
This REL infographic discusses how to use data to identify disparities in discipline removals and how the REL is working with Maryland to improve disparities.
REL Mid-Atlantic partnered with the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) to conduct analyses of MSDE's school discipline data. MSDE sought to identify trends in, and school characteristics associated with, disproportionate rates of exclusionary discipline for students based on race/ethnicity and disability status. The report’s key findings include:
- Exclusionary discipline rates declined for all subgroups of students in Maryland during the past decade, but Black students and students with disabilities continued to be suspended and expelled from school at more than twice the rates of other students.
- Even when they were involved in the same types of infractions, Black students and students with disabilities were significantly more likely to receive out-of-school suspensions than other subgroups.
- Schools with discipline disparities shared some characteristics, including a higher percentage of inexperienced teachers.
REL Mid-Atlantic partnered with the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) to conduct analyses of MSDE's school discipline data. MSDE sought to identify trends in, and school characteristics associated with, disproportionate rates of exclusionary discipline for students based on race/ethnicity and disability status. The report’s key findings include:
- Exclusionary discipline rates declined for all subgroups of students in Maryland during the past decade, but Black students and students with disabilities continued to be suspended and expelled from school at more than twice the rates of other students.
- Even when they were involved in the same types of infractions, Black students and students with disabilities were significantly more likely to receive out-of-school suspensions than other subgroups.
- Schools with discipline disparities shared some characteristics, including a higher percentage of inexperienced teachers.
Infographic on understanding discipline disparities in Maryland (408 KB)
Although disciplinary removals have declined in Maryland over the past 10 years, discipline disparities persist. This REL infographic discusses how to use data to identify disparities and how the REL is working with Maryland to improve disparities.
| Name | Title | Organizational affiliation | Organization location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kimberly Buckheit | Program Specialist | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Tracy Dusablon | Research and Data Coordinator | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Mary Gable | Assistant State Superintendent of Academic Policy | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Chandra Haislet | Director of Accountability and Data Systems | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Sylvia Lawson | Chief Performance Officer, Deputy State Superintendent, Office of School Effectiveness | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Lynne Muller | Section Chief, Student Services and School Counseling, Division of Student Support, Academic Enrichment, and Educational Policy | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Deborah Nelson | Section Chief, School Safety and Climate, Division of Student Support, Academic Enrichment, and Educational Policy | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Walter Sallee | Director, Student Services and Strategic Planning Branch | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Dara Shaw | Executive Director, Office of Research | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
| Christy Thompson | Division Executive Director of Student, Family, and School Support | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland |
Goals
- Help states and school districts (beginning with Maryland) understand their discipline data, refine their definition and measurement of disproportionality, and assess their progress toward addressing disparities
- Help inform and improve the evidence-based technical support states deliver to schools and districts with disproportionately high suspension and expulsion rates
- Develop and disseminate products and evidence-based strategies to address disparities, thereby raising public awareness about exclusionary discipline
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