Many Los Angeles parents have suspected that “different discipline applied in wealthier neighborhoods, and low-income students became targets for immediate suspension,” says Maisie Chin, program director at CADRE, a South LA parent organization. “There were 76,000 students suspended in 2006,” she points out. “That’s 10% of the school population!”

So when the LA Unified School District announced in May 2005 that it was going to create a new discipline policy, parents at CADRE, along with other community groups, mobilized to promote “humane and holistic” discipline with less use of suspension.

The final policy, adopted in February, was “a huge victory” says Chin. It calls for:

• Collaboration between schools and parents
• “Positive behavior support” tailored to students’ needs, with suspension an option only for serious problems

Gathering information

The community groups requested information about “opportunity transfers” of students to different schools, usually done for disciplinary reasons. CADRE also surveyed 90 youth who had dropped out of school and 31 of their parents. CADRE members say too many kids were being suspended for minor problems and that high suspension rates are linked to high drop-out rates.

Involving parents

“I became involved with CADRE to defend my son,” says Francesca Reyes. Her 13-year-old son had been receiving speech therapy in Compton, but when the family moved to LA, Reyes says, “I met with the school and told them about his needs, but he never got the services he needed.” Because of his language problems, her son is easily frustrated, Reyes says, and was suspended for fighting with another student.

Diane Evans also became involved with CADRE over discipline of a child with special needs. Her second daughter, she says, “distracts very easily, which often gets her into trouble. What she needs is to be in a smaller classroom.” The new policy calls on schools to find solutions that remove the causes of behavior problems.

Speaking out

In June 2006, CADRE organized a “people’s hearing,” involving parents, students, and teachers. Media coverage of the event sparked more community discussion of the issue. CADRE members also demonstrated and testified at school board meetings. Reyes says she told the school board, “I felt their discipline policy pushed kids out of school.”

Advocacy by parents was "very significant" in shaping the new discipline policy, says Hector Madrigal, LAUSD director of Pupil Services. "CADRE was one of the most high-profile groups but many parents were saying the same thing."

Joining the process

Last fall, after coaching by CADRE staff, a group of parents worked with the teachers’ union and a board member to help write the new policy.

Before participating, says Evans, “I thought it would just be parents wanting the change. But the school board, staff members, parents, and children wanted the resolution to pass.”

Looking ahead

With the new policy, says Evans, “It’s not as easy just to suspend children anymore, less will drop out, and more kids will graduate.”

“We’re not expecting change overnight,” Chin points out, “but this policy gives parents a tool to use in working with their own school.”

And, she adds, the campaign for the discipline policy “showed parents how to make the school district listen, and that it can be done.”

CADRE, 323-752-9997