Related Link: Recent Accomplishments

SCHOOLS TO PRISONS PIPELINE

This project aims to minimize the percentage of disciplined students who become entangled in the juvenile justice system. Our approach includes documenting the schools-to-prison pipeline in Connecticut, researching its causes and finding ways to mitigate the tendency of students to progress from school into the juvenile justice system. We expect the data and recommendations generated from the research to:

• Support advocacy efforts for state legislation that preserves the purpose of Public Act 07-66 by financially supporting and structuring a robust and constructive in- school suspension program in Connecticut’s public schools
• Structure a legislative platform for advocates to use that will include model school policies and best practices within school districts that should be implemented statewide

Getting the Facts

Thus far there has been insufficient research in Connecticut that focuses on what causes the school-to-prison-pipeline and what policies can help reduce or eliminate a student's progression from school into the juvenile justice system. Determining the root causes of S2PP includes analyzing the structure of both school-specific and district-specific policies, practices, and philosophies that tend to create a school to prison pipeline within some schools. We will use model schools to illustrate the structural differences between different schools and districts that lessen reliance on suspension and expulsion to discipline students effectively. While retaining, funding and implementing Public Act 07-66 seems to be key, we also want to explore other school and district efforts to provide an alternative disciplinary route for students that have been successful.

Our Preliminary Strategy

• Leveraging hundreds of hours of pro bono partner work to access data from the Connecticut Department of Education and school districts previously not made public, interview high level stakeholders, and create robust legislative and policy recommendations; (As necessary, our pro bono partners will make Freedom of Information requests to individual school districts to gather individual school and district level data.)
• Assembling an advisory committee made up of stakeholders, school districts, service providers, and advocates to structure our research;
• Building relationships with the Connecticut Department of Education and school districts before making data requests to familiarize them with our project, gain buy-in and recruit project partners;
• Performing qualitative analysis in the form of interviews with school board members, school district officials, school superintendents, school counselors, social workers, community representatives, school principals and assistant principals, teachers, school security personnel, policy officers, and other state level stakeholders/policy makers; (Issues addressed in these interviews will include school disciplinary practices and their cost, Public Act 07-66 and the expense of a constructive and rehabilitative in-school suspension program.)
• Structuring data analysis and mapping to ensure that it assists direct service organizations in their efforts to improve services for their clients, as well as assisting other advocacy organizations that can join our legislative coalition.

Developing the Necessary Statewide Coalition

We are working within an existing coalition organized by the Connecticut Juvenile Justice Alliance that is comprised of organizations that provide services for children within the state juvenile justice system. Separately, we plan to build a broader and complementary legislative coalition that would be comprised of school districts, the Connecticut Federation of Teachers, parent organizations, and other stakeholders and advocates for quality public education for students. This broader coalition will help with structuring research, facilitating data requests to state agencies/districts, and providing intern staff time to aid research.

Preserving the Intent of Public Act 07-66

Although signed into law in 2007, this Act’s implementation was postponed by the General Assembly until January 2009 at the earliest. More worrisome, Public Act 07-66 may well be reversed if school district opposition to this “unfunded mandate” is not resolved. By providing timely research to support legislative committee testimony, in-person meetings with legislators, and assembling the necessary political coalition, Connecticut Appleseed will work in the 2009 session to both maintain and fund this promising law.