Bill would end out-of-school suspensions for young children unless they pose a threat

Senate lawmakers are weighing a bill to limit out-of-school suspensions for young children, following criticism of the practice from the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island.

On Wednesday night, the Senate Education Committee heard the proposal, sponsored by Sen. Ana Quezada, D-Providence, with a total of 10 senators signing on. It would stop out-of-school suspensions for students in preschool through fifth grade, unless the student is a danger to others.

Specifically, the legislation states that a suspension may only take place if "the school administration, in consultation with a school psychologist or other mental health professional, determines that such student’s behavior presents a threat to the physical safety or health of others which cannot be reduced or eliminated through interventions and supports."

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The hearing followed the release of a ACLU of RI report showing that children of color and children with disabilities are being over-suspended when compared with their white, non-disabled peers. The report focused in particular on suspensions among young children, some of which were given for vague and minor offenses such as "insubordination."

"I think children of 6 years old are not old enough to understand why they’re getting suspended, and I think we need to look into the development of children at that age," Quezada said. "Children of 6 years old may have behavior issues. I think we have to look to parents what’s going on in the house, why [aren’t] children behaving at that age."

Hannah Stern, a ACLU of RI policy associate, said that from 2018 to 2019, kindergarten through fifth-grade students collectively missed more than 2,000 days of instruction because of suspensions.

"The loss of even a day of education, we know, can have profound impacts on students, especially these younger grades," Stern said.

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However, the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals does not support the bill.

James Parisi, a field representative for the union, said that although he wants alternatives to suspensions, "teachers deal with the consequences of not imposing some kind of behavior standards in the classroom."

"And while I understand the ACLU focusing on what about the lost instructional hours … I’d ask you to consider what about the learning needs of the 25 others who remain, whose classroom has been disrupted, if that in fact was the case ...," he added.

The bill has been held for further study.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Out-of-school suspensions would be limited for young kids in RI bill