The persistent effect of race and the promise of alternatives to suspension in school discipline outcomes Yolanda Anyon a, ⁎, Jeffrey M. Jenson a,1 , Inna Altschul a,2 , Jordan Farrar a,3 , Jeanette McQueen a,4 , Eldridge Greer b,5 , Barbara Downing b,6 , John Simmons c,7 a Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver, 2148 S. High Street, Denver, CO 80208, United States b Mental Health & Assessment Services, Denver Public Schools, 1330 Fox St., Denver, CO 80204, United States c Department of Student Services, Denver Public Schools, 900 Grant St., Denver, CO 80203, United States abstract article info Article history: Received 22 February 2014 Received in revised form 26 June 2014 Accepted 27 June 2014 Available online 10 July 2014 Keywords: School discipline outcomes Racial disparity Restorative approaches Alternatives to suspension Demographic and student discipline data were used to examine the influence of multi-level risk and protective factors on exclusionary school discipline outcomes. Participants included all youth (n = 87,997) in grades K to 12 who were enrolled in Denver Public Schools (n = 183) in 2011–2012. The dataset included measures of risk and protective factors for exclusionary school discipline outcomes such as race, family poverty, special edu- cation status, emotional disability, participation in gifted and talented programs, homelessness, office referral reasons over the course of one school year, participation in in-school suspension, a behavior contract, or restor- ative approaches, and school composition. Multilevel logistic regression modeling was used to estimate students' likelihood of receiving one or more office disciplinary referrals, suspensions, expulsions, and/or law enforcement referrals. Findings indicate that student racial background and school racial composition are enduring risks across key decision points of the school discipline process. Conversely, participation in restorative interventions and in-school suspensions protects students from out-of-school suspensions. This study suggests that ongoing atten- tion to issues of racial inequity in school discipline outcomes is warranted, and that restorative practices have potential as an inclusive strategy to improve school discipline outcomes without excluding students from the classroom. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The use of exclusionary school discipline practices, such as out-of- school suspension and expulsion, is a growing concern among re- searchers and youth service providers. Studies indicate that young people who are disciplined in school are at greater risk than other stu- dents to experience a host of academic and psychosocial problems across the lifespan (Hemphill et al., 2012; Rausch, Skiba, & Simmons, 2004; Sprague & Hill, 2000). Youth who have been suspended or expelled are more likely than other youth to be held back a grade level, leave school, or become involved in the juvenile justice system (Fabelo et al., 2011; Rausch et al., 2004; Skiba et al., 2003). This negative trajectory, often referred to as the “school to prison pipeline” has increasingly been the target of youth and community organizing for educational justice (Ford et al., 2013; González, 2011). Studies of school disciplinary practices also reveal troubling and persistent patterns of disparity. Low-income children, students with disabilities, and youth of color, particularly Black boys in special educa- tion, are significantly more likely than students of other backgrounds to be referred to school administrators for discipline problems and to receive out-of-school suspension, expulsion, or a referral to law enforce- ment as punishment (Hannon, DeFina, & Bruch, 2013; Hemphill, Plenty, Herrenkohl, Toumbourou, & Catalano, 2014; Krezmien, Leone, & Achilles, 2006; Payne & Welch, 2010; Skiba et al., 2011; Theriot, Craun, & Dupper, 2010; Wallace, Goodkind, Wallace, & Bachman, 2008). These students tend to be disciplined more harshly for the same behav- iors that are committed by more advantaged students and are less likely to have access to opportunities to develop social and emotional skills valued by schools (Reyes, Elias, Parker, & Rosenblatt, 2013). A growing number of scholars, school-based mental health profes- sionals, and educators have therefore suggested that the goal of achiev- ing educational equity for vulnerable youth cannot be realized without eliminating disparities in school discipline practices (Beck & Muschkin, Children and Youth Services Review 44 (2014) 379–386 ⁎ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 303 871 3657. E-mail addresses: yanyon@du.edu (Y. Anyon), jeffrey.jenson@du.edu (J.M. Jenson), inna.altschul@du.edu (I. Altschul), farrarjordan86@gmail.com (J. Farrar), jeanette.mcqueen@du.edu (J. McQueen), Eldridge_Greer@dpsk12.org (E. Greer), Barbara_Downing@dpsk12.org (B. Downing), John_Simmons@dpsk12.org (J. Simmons). 1 Tel.: +1 303 871 2526. 2 Tel.: +1 303 871 4243. 3 Tel.: +1 202 834 9118. 4 Tel.: +1 303 871 3375. 5 Tel.: +1 720 423 8088. 6 Tel.: +1 720 423 8223. 7 Tel.: +1 720 423 3132. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.06.025 0190-7409/© 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 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