School districts historically approached conflict-resolution from a zero-sum perspective: suspend students seen as disruptive and potentially harm them, or avoid suspensions and harm their classmates. Restorative practices (RP) -- focused on reparation and shared ownership of disciplinary justice -- are designed to avoid this trade-off by…

Researchers and policymakers have written extensively about the lack of evidence for the use of suspension and expulsion in schools and the disproportionate impact among racial and ethnic minorities and children in special education. As a result, states across the country have passed legislation to reform school discipline practices, with varying…

While research shows that exclusionary discipline practices in the early years are ineffective and developmentally inappropriate, young children continue to be suspended and expelled at high rates. An increasing number of states have taken steps to ensure that young children are not removed from programs due to their behavior. This report explores…

Two years after the State of Illinois enacted an extensive non-exclusionary discipline reform in schools, 322 key discipline gatekeepers were surveyed about the extent and impact of the new state policy. The results showed that several core provisions of the reform had not been fully implemented or addressed through professional development.…

The enactment of Senate Bill 100/Public Act 099-0456 (SB100) in 2016 compelled school districts throughout Illinois to evaluate student discipline policies. This dissertation examines the impact SB100 had on middle and high schools throughout the state and within a large suburban K-12 school district. This dissertation is organized into three…

In Illinois, Senate Bill 100 was known in the statutes as Public Act 99-0456, took effect September, 15, 2016. Illinois State Senator Kimberly Lightford and Illinois State Representative William Davis both sponsored Senate Bill 100. Senator Lightford said, "We're moving toward a disciplinary system that prioritizes educating students by…

The purpose of this investigation is to describe the outcomes of a multi-state study of written discipline policies in a high school setting. This study examines discipline codes of conduct and analyzes the content for behaviors ranging in severity (mild, moderate, and severe) while specifically examining the use of suspension as a punitive…

The Illinois School Code requires hearing officers in student expulsion or suspension review cases to provide the school board with a written summary of the evidence heard. While no particular form is required for the summary, this document presents a sample hearing report that can serve as a model for those preparing reports. The…

Concludes that the ability of public high school disciplinarians to recognize the elements of fairness in student suspension situations is only minimally acceptable. (FL)

Results of this survey indicate that the Goss v. Lopez decision, concerning notice and hearing requirements in school suspension incidents, does not represent an overwhelming administrative burden in Illinois, since many principals have long provided the safeguards that the decision mandates. (MB)

This report describes the methodology and initial results of an evaluation of the universal (school-wide) Positive Behavioral Intervention and Support (PBIS) initiative in Illinois, including (1) strategies for establishing research-based practices and data-based evaluation systems in implementation schools; (2) methodology and initial findings of…

This Illinois state memorandum to school district superintendents provides clarification of policies regarding discipline of students with disabilities, specifically the issue of multiple suspensions, which may in the aggregate total more than 10 school days per school year, and the amount of services required during disciplinary exclusions. The…