We all know that public education is one of the greatest pillars of a free and just society. It speaks to the heart of the American Dream that any child, regardless of circumstance, can gain the knowledge, wisdom and character necessary to compete in the workplace. In a lightning speed global market, we simply cannot afford as a nation, to fail our children. When children are removed from an educational path and put on a disciplinary track, their odds are substantially reduced. It is, therefore, imperative that we give thoughtful consideration to our goals for remediating behavior. It is crucial that we provide solutions that ensure all children have a fair and reasonable opportunity to succeed.

You have probably heard about Gwinnett SToPP’s efforts to train local leaders and raise community awareness but we would like to share more with you now about our third strategy to be a change agent in Gwinnett County – Finding New Directions. The aim of this effort is to work within the system to affect procedures and find more equitable solutions for disciplinary issues- specifically to do away with criminal consequences for minor, non-violent infractions. We are pleased to share that GCPS announced recently that they want to work with us on crafting a protocol to help reduced school-based arrests and exploring restorative practices.

As you might imagine, student discipline is complex. We all want our children to feel safe when they enter their school. They spend the better part of their day surrounded by other children and those relationships can be tough for teachers and administrators to manage. All children are different. Each child has his or her own set of issues and needs. Teachers are constantly asked to walk the razor’s edge between providing appropriate accommodations for students with individual needs and maintaining an atmosphere that benefits the entirety of the children in their care.  Add shrinking budgets, testing and additional security concerns in this post-Sandy Hook world and you can imagine how difficult it can be to craft rules and regulations to keep children safe but also remember that we want all children in public schools to succeed.

Study after study shows that children who are removed from instruction for discipline reasons fall further behind and start to spiral their way to the courts system. That downward spiral is even more precipitous when the school chooses to press charges. Children with a juvenile criminal record are much less likely to graduate from high school and much more likely to be arrested as adults. According to report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, “A recent analysis of young people included in the National Longitudinal Youth Survey found that incarceration at age 16 or earlier led to a 26 percent lower chance of graduating high school by age 19.”

GCPS officials have met with us and are continuing to meet with us to consider alternatives to current policy. We are optimistic about the prospects of these discussions. We believe GCPS want to serve our children as best they are able. We understand they need input from parents to determine the priorities of the community. We are dedicated to facilitating conversation to assist them as they work through these many complex issues and we will certainly to continue to stay in contact with parents and the community at large as these discussions progress.