This story was originally produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet focused on education. LOS ANGELES — When Abram van der Fluit began teaching science more than two decades ago, he tried to ward off classroom disruption with the threat of suspension: “I had my consequences, and the third consequence was you get referred to the dean,” he recalled. Suspending kids didn’t make them less defiant, he said, but getting them out of the school for a bit made his job easier. Now, suspensions for “willful defiance” are off the table at Maywood Academy High School ..read more

This article was first published by The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization covering the U.S. criminal justice system.  In separate trials earlier this year, Jennifer and James Crumbley became the first parents in U.S. history to be convicted of involuntary manslaughter for a mass shooting committed by their child. On Tuesday, they were each sentenced to 10–15 years in prison, the maximum penalty for the crime. Prosecutors argued the Crumbleys ignored urgent warning signs that their son Ethan was having violent thoughts, and that the parents provided access to the gun he used ..read more

When Yusef Qualls-El was 17, a judge sentenced him to life behind bars. It was the mid-1990s, an era when the U.S. prison population exploded. Thousands of minors like Qualls-El received sentences of life without parole and entered prison at an age when their peers were going to college or starting their careers. But inside, education is often reserved for those who will soon return to society. As a result, those who were seen as the least likely to get out had the fewest opportunities. Now, as courts and lawmakers have begun to rethink extreme sentencing policies for young people, thousands o ..read more

This story was originally produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet focused on education. Imagine waking up each morning with no hope for the day ahead, navigating a minefield of potential conflicts with your body on high alert. That was my reality as a marginalized youth — misunderstood, labeled as a troublemaker and cast out without a chance to reconcile and evolve. Growing up with anxiety in school is an all-too-common experience that perpetuates a cycle of fear and resentment. It’s time to acknowledge and address this narrative that adversely affects ..read more

Source The Sentencing Project Summary "After decades of neglect, the youth justice field is awakening to the importance of diversion in lieu of arrest and formal court processing for many or most youth accused of delinquent behavior. Even amid rising concerns over youth crime nationwide, jurisdictions across the country are heeding the evidence by taking concerted action to address more cases of alleged lawbreaking behavior outside the formal justice system. This momentum to make diversion a centerpiece of juvenile justice reform is encouraging given powerful research showing that youth who ar ..read more

This story was originally published by ProPublica. The commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services publicly said this month that the agency was working with lawmakers to address oversight gaps at juvenile detention facilities across the state. But behind the scenes, the department is working to water down a bill that would do just that, according to one of the bill’s sponsors and others working on the legislation. Last year, an investigation by WPLN and ProPublica revealed that the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Service Center in Knoxville was illegally locking children alone ..read more

For the past few years, guns have been identified as the leading cause of death for children in the United States. There were 2,571 children age 1 to 17 who died in shootings in the U.S. in 2021, 68% more than the 1,531 that occurred in 2000. To help reduce the number of firearm-related deaths and injuries among children, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in January 2024 called upon school and district administrators to talk with parents and guardians about safe firearm storage practices. As experts on the safe storage of firearms – and as leaders of the University of Connecticut’s ARMS Ce ..read more

America’s schools don’t always welcome cultural expression: A judge ruled that a Texas school did not violate the CROWN Act by suspending Darryl George for his hairstyle. Barbers Hill ISD removed the Black 18-year-old student from regular classes Aug. 31, 2023, stating he was not complying with the dress code. The Texas CROWN Act, which prohibits race-based hair discrimination, went into effect just one day later. A Texas judge ruled (video below) on Feb. 22, 2024, that the Barbers Hill School District didn’t violate the law when it punished Darryl George, a Black student, for wearing his ha ..read more

This story was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet focused on education. The 9-year-old had been drawing images of guns at school and pretending to point the weapons at other students. He’d become more withdrawn, and had stared angrily at a teacher. The principal suspended him for a week. Educators were unsure whether it was safe for him to return to school — and, if so, how best to support him. “None of us can predict violence.” Nancy Rappaport, psychiatrist So, as schools around the country are increasingly inclined to do amid hei ..read more

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