School Board Advocacy Toolkit

All children have a constitutional right to education. But, just this past year, over 40,000 Washington students were denied that right by being disciplined with out-of-school suspensions and expulsions.  Students who are Black, Native American, Pacific Islander, and Latino are disproportionately suspended and expelled from school. Students with disabilities are also disproportionately excluded.
 
Decades of research have shown that suspension and expulsion are harmful and ineffective.  Students who are excluded from school are more likely to drop out of school without graduating and end up in the criminal justice system. Finally, suspending, expelling, or prosecuting students does not deter or prevent behavior problems at school. Every child has the right to an equitable education; breaking the school to prison pipeline is a critical first step to ensuring equity.
Suspension Outcomes
In 2019, every school district in Washington will revise school discipline policies and procedures, due to recent changes in state law and regulations.  That means parents, community members, and other advocates have the opportunity to promote policy changes that will support students and keep them in schools.

This toolkit aims to provide parents and community members in Washington tools they can use to fight for meaningful and systemic reform of school discipline policies and practices.