Laura Engelman

Delivering Research to the Field Laura Engelman

This training manual was created in response to concerns among educational stakeholders about the harmful effects of exclusionary discipline practices, such as out-of-school suspension and expulsion, on children and adolescents. A wide body of evidence indicates that young people who are disciplined in school are at greater risk than other students to experience academic and developmental problems across the lifespan. These studies have also revealed troubling and persistent patterns of disparities. Youth of color, low-income children, students with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ youth are significantly more likely than students of other backgrounds to 1) be referred to school administrators for behavior problems, and 2) receive out-of-school suspension, expulsion, or a referral to law enforcement as a consequence for the behavior. Yet much of this research has not been translated for practitioners who work directly with children and adolescents, even though school discipline generally, and racial disparities specifically, have come under increasing public scrutiny and are the focus of new accountability policies. The trainings outlined in this manual aim to bridge the research-practice gap in this critical area of education reform, with particular attention to the issue of racial disparities in exclusionary discipline.