The $3.4 Trillion Mistake
The Cost of Mass Incarceration and Criminalization, and How Justice Reinvestment Can Build a Better Future for All.
Over the last 30+ years, the U.S. has invested heavily in police, prosecutors, courts, jails, and prisons to address not only public safety issues but also public health concerns such as the effects of poverty, mental illness, and drug use. As a result, the justice system now intersects with our lives far more often, and far more harshly, than ever before, and there are many millions more people that are either under the control of, or employed by, that system.
New Book Examines Inequality in School Discipline
Inequality in School Discipline fills a critical void by providing the most current and authoritative information on what is known about disciplinary disparities. School exclusion—out-of-school suspension and expulsion in particular—remains a substantial component of discipline in our nation’s schools, and those consequences continue to fall disproportionally on certain groups of learners.
End Zero Tolerance: New Website!
This site is the place to go to get up-to-date resources and commentary on how to keep young people in school and out of the justice system. It is loaded with presentations and sample materials, and to links to videos, podcasts, policy statements, research reports, and media stories. In a few cases, we have taken official data and produced simplified spreadsheets illustrating a trend.
Addressing Homophobic Bullying in Schools
While all forms of bullying in schools are concerning, homophobic bullying—bullying based on the
perception that someone is gay, lesbian, or bisexual—is especially harmful. Victims of homophobic bullying are more likely to have lower grades, drop out of school, use drugs and alcohol, and report being depressed.
Students who are bullied may also feel that they do not have close and supportive relationships with other students and teachers, a concept known as “school connectedness,” which can lead to academic problems.
2016-2017 GSA Year Start Packet
We have over 40 tools to help you start and strengthen your GSA, transform your school, and change the world.
Are you ready to take your GSA activism to the next level? Then it’s time to run a campaign to Change Your School! Learn what you can do to fight slurs, increase LGBTQ visibility, take down the gender binary system and more!
For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood... and the Rest of Y'all Too: Reality Pedagogy and Urban Education
Merging real stories with theory, research, and practice, a prominent scholar offers a new approach to teaching and learning for every stakeholder in urban education.
Drawing on his own experience of feeling undervalued and invisible in classrooms as a young man of color and merging his experiences with more than a decade of teaching and researching in urban America, ...
Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools
Fifteen-year-old Diamond stopped going to school the day she was expelled for lashing out at peers who constantly harassed and teased her for something everyone on the staff had missed: she was being trafficked for sex. After months on the run, she was arrested and sent to a detention center for violating a court order to attend school.
Measuring Up
Not Measuring Up analyzes Massachusetts’ most recent school discipline data and finds that students of color, students with disabilities, and charter school students in Massachusetts are disproportionately likely to be suspended, particularly for minor misbehavior. Massachusetts’ new school discipline law went into effect this school year, and the report’s findings are intended to help measure how well the new law is being followed.
Let Her Learn: Join the Fight to Stop School Pushout
Schools are unfairly pushing Black girls out. They suspend them for minor stuff—like “having an attitude” or “talking back.” These so-called violations are often informed by stereotypes and bias. The result? More frequent and harsher punishment for Black girls.
Does your school treat girls of color fairly? Check out this guide to find out. Download the full tool kit (PDF) here. And find out how you can share it with your school leaders.
Boston Student Rights App
Boston Public School students designed the app with one purpose in mind: to get everyone on the same page about student rights and school discipline. The app breaks down district policies and the Code of Conduct so that everyone understands the rules. Use the app to start a conversation, or to file a report if you or someone you know has been unfairly disciplined or discriminated against.