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PROBLEM STATEMENT

Alternative school has 80% black male students who have significantly inferior academic experience.

Mental health interventions not enough to prevent increase of suspensions for students.

Students are placed at increased risk of suspension, expulsion and drop out.

This is a race-based issue, an equity issue, and a civil rights issue

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CRITICAL QUESTIONS

How do district leaders and mental health directors more accurately identify and address the problem?

Who’s problem is being addressing?

What’s the motivator for addressing the problem?

What is the goal?

INSTITUTIONAL INTERVENTIONAlternative School + School-based mental

health services: Well intentioned intervention or resegregation or academic death sentence?  

 

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DISPROPORTIONALITY OF PLACEMENTPlacement criteria is based on multiple suspensions, chronic absences or significantly low gradesStudents usually referred because of behavior incident_____________________________________________________

FLAWED DESIGNAcademic, behavioral, and SES varied greatly but the most common demoniator was raceSubstandard facilityInexperienced leadership & staffStigma of placementLack of support and resources for overwhelming needCross purposes of education and mental health

“It’s because I’m black!”

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 ADDRESSING INSTITUTIONAL RACISMAddressing institutional racism can be overwhelming and must be precisely identified: Suspension & placement.Interventions should aim at leveraging resources and opportunities to simultaneously reduce the immediate impact on students and begin longer term sustainable change _______________________________________________

CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE INTERVENTION

Prioritize and invest heavily in the most marginalized students. Recruit and incentivize appropriate leadership & staff that are best able to work with these students.Imbed these interventions within the current institutions.Deliberately overlap and align education and mental health.

EQUITY IMPLICATIONS

PolicyDemystify the role of interpersonal and institutional bias in disproportionate suspension and placement of black males in alternative schools.

Reframe the issue by examining the pathologies inherent in the institution of American education, not black male behavior.

PracticeDiscover important links between caring relationships, culturally responsive classroom management, and the elimination of disproportionate suspension and placement by bias.

Connect effective classroom strategies with eliminating disproportionate suspension and placement by bias.