A plethora of research (McCadden, 1998; Monroe 2005; Skiba, Peterson, & Williams, 2000) on student discipline emphasizes the inequities surrounding the distribution of disciplinary actions taken by schools/school districts in regards to behavior, particularly for African American males. This study provides an in-depth examination of disciplinary roles, and argues that by making distinctions between whether a student can be identified as an instigator (i.e. any individual who encourages another individual to commit an offense), participant (i.e. any individual who willfully instigates, abets, or commits an offense), or offender (i.e. any individual who commits an offense) will potentially reveal more about their level of disruption. Drawing upon a sample of 6,301 behavior occurrences committed by African American males in a K-12 urban school district in the mid-western region of the U.S., a counterargument is presented suggesting that African American males are not the primary culprits of disruption. As a result of the findings of this study, recommendations will be made to teachers, counselors, and administrators to reduce the behavior patterns of African American males and improve academic achievement. (Contains 6 tables.)