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Citation

Davis, Cassandra R. (2017). “Why Are the Black Kids Being Suspended?” An Examination of a School District’s Efforts to Reform a Faulty Suspension Policy through Community Conversations. School Community Journal, 27(1), 159-180.

Abstract

This article will explore a district’s attempt to revise their suspension policy with the collaborative effort of community members and school-level educators. In this article, I will present my analysis of data from six forums where participants expressed their concerns and made recommendations on how to improve the policy. I will also use research that highlights best practices of reforming schools through community engagement to determine how, if at all, the district was able to enact change with their policy. My findings revealed that, across Community Conversations, participants viewed additional support—largely centered on improving instructional practices for teachers and providing professional development to both teachers and parents to reduce suspensions—as a necessity. Furthermore, the school district was somewhat successful in reforming their policy since they involved the community and school personnel and created a space for group collaboration; however, they struggled to build trust between groups, resulting in an absence of parents of color from forums.

URL

https://www.adi.org/journal/2017ss/DavisSpring2017.pdf

Reference Type

Journal Article

Year Published

2017

Journal Title

School Community Journal

Author(s)

Davis, Cassandra R.

Article Type

Regular

Continent/Country

United States of America

State

Nonspecific

Race/Ethnicity

Black

ORCiD

Davis, C - 0000-0003-4444-3113