New research finds schools remain more likely to suspend Black students and students with disabilities, despite overall reductions

August 23, 2021

While schools have continued to lower their reliance on out-of-school suspension to manage student behavior, large disparities still exist by race and disability status, according to a new analysis of the Civil Rights Data Collection from Child Trends. The analysis found that, in the 2017-18 school year:

• The average K-12 school suspended 4.5% of their students and the average secondary school suspended 7.4% of their students, compared to 5.6% and 9.6% in the 2011-12 school year.
• K-12 schools suspend their Black students at rates twice as high (7.8% of Black students in the 2017–18 school year) as their White (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.6%) counterparts. 
• Schools also suspend their students with disabilities at rates twice as high as their peers without disabilities (8.5% versus 4.0%, respectively, at the average K-12 school).
• Disparities also exist within individual schools. 1 in 5 public K-12 schools (22.5%) disproportionately suspend their Black students at higher rates than their White students, and 2 in 5 (39.9%) disproportionately suspend their students with disabilities relative to students without disabilities. 

As students return to in-person instruction, they’ll face new behavioral expectations as schools work to safeguard communities from COVID-19 transmission. Schools may need a renewed commitment to positive behavioral approaches, tailored to support both new social and emotional needs and expectations, to maintain the current trend towards reduced disciplinary exclusion.