A More Sane Approach to School Discipline- No More Zero Tolerance

no-zero-tolerance (1)One of our areas of practice here at Lauralaw has been representing students who have faced disciplinary action from their school.  Our office has represented teens with stellar academic and behavioral records who have received suspensions or expulsions for minor infractions, or for their first serious infraction, under zero tolerance policies.  VOYCE, or Voices of Youth in Chicago Education, created a bill that recently became a law last August that aims to end zero tolerance policies in schools across Illinois.  The law sets in place many MAJOR changes to the way we handle discipline in schools. One of the many changes is that schools may not expel or suspend a student unless all other options have been exhausted. It always struck us as an absurd way to discipline a child- taking them OUT of school! This bill offers a solution far more tailored to the child and the public best interest.  After all, the public has an interest in having the future adults of our society get an education!

As of late, schools have adopted zero tolerance policies in regards to punishment for students who make mistakes or misbehave. Under zero tolerance policies, there are set punishments when certain rules are broken which takes power and discretion away from disciplinarians.  Zero tolerance policies often call for suspensions or expulsions for certain behaviors rather than evaluating each student and situation individually.  The Department of Education recently discussed why zero tolerance policies don’t work and how damaging they can be for the students.  Under this new law, educators can be more creative with punishments and have more discretion when it comes to students who are misbehaving. Suspensions and expulsions are last resort options when nothing else works.  Zero tolerance policies will not be allowed in schools moving forward under this law.

Another requirement under this law is that schools must provide academic and behavioral support for students who are struggling in either of those areas which includes academic and mental health counseling.  If the school does exhaust all other options and decides to suspend the student, they must give a detailed explanation determining the reasoning behind the suspension and set a reintegration plan for that student. Below are more guidelines the law puts in place:

  • Teacher need be educated on consequences of student exclusion from school and how it can lead to early involvement in the judicial system, cultural and age-appropriate ways to respond and discipline students, and diverse classroom management techniques.
  • Students who are suspended must be allowed to make up the work they missed
  • Teachers and principals must provide parents with information regarding the reasoning behind the suspension or other disciplinary action
  • School counselors cannot suggest students dropping out of school
  • Charter schools cannot fine students for infractions

The main goal of this bill created by VOYCE was to educate Illinois lawmakers on the negative effects suspensions and expulsions have on students and how this pushes them into our juvenile and adult criminal justice systems in what’s referred to as the “school-to prison-pipeline when they receive these kinds of punishments.  Many students who have faced harsh discipline of zero tolerance from schools have their futures ruined because of one mistake. Students who are suspended and expelled are six times more likely to drop out and enter into the juvenile justice system.  Many schools have very high levels of suspension/expulsion rates and Chicago and Illinois are no exception, having high rates of both.  Clearly, having the student miss school doesn’t allow for academic success for students who already regularly miss school and makes the issues worse.

Hopefully, this law will allow every student to get an education and keep students in school. All schools, including charter schools, must adopt new forms of discipline by September 16, 2016 although many schools have already begun incorporating these policies.  We know that these laws will have a sweeping effect on all Illinois schools and change the way schools handle discipline issues going forward.

We will continue to update you on this law and others as we get information.  As always, if you have questions about this law or any other laws or find yourself under arrest, don’t hesitate to contact us and one of our skilled attorneys will be happy to assist you.


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