Go to the Principal\u27s Office! Disciplinary Action in Education

While school districts frequently have policies regarding dress code, absences, and more, these policies are subject to bias towards certain groups. This bias is innate to many of the policies themselves, but can be exacerbated by bias in implementation. These biases perpetuate a system of discrimination of discipline which further damages a student’s personal life and academic career. Not only is a student more likely to engage in crime after a suspension, they are also more likely to suffer familial conflicts, and they report less sense of belonging in school, and lower participation in class and extracurriculars, as well as a reduced likelihood of reaching out to teachers (Casella, 2003). Suspensions and detentions are ineffective, as the majority of students who received one also received many more after that (Fabelo et al., 2011). Meanwhile research suggests that there are alternatives, such as restorative justice, positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), and social and emotional learning (SEL), that can function much more effectively without excluding the student from the classroom (Mergler et al., 2014). The purpose of this investigation is to gather preliminary data about college students’ disciplinary history in an educational setting. I anticipate collecting preliminary data on 100 college students in order to inform future thesis research on this topic. My presentation will focus on the structure of the current study and preliminary findings, and I welcome suggestions for future directions