Disciplinary Actions
Date posted: 07/11/2006
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| Disciplinary Actions Taken in Larimer County School Districts | |
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School districts report suspensions and expulsions by the type of incident and by the race/ethnicity and gender of students involved. These data reflect the number of incidents and do not reflect an unduplicated count of students receiving disciplinary actions. A student may be suspended more than once in a school year, or may be suspended and later expelled. (Colorado Department of Education). There are three types of suspension reported by school districts:
- Classroom Suspension/Teacher Removal : The student is removed from the classroom and may include contacting the parent or guardian, having a student-parent-teacher conference and in the case of a second removal, developing a behavior plan.
- In School Suspension: The student is suspended from a classroom to another location in the school.
- Out of School Suspension : The student is suspended from school grounds.
Expulsion from school is the most serious action taken. A student may be expelled for any length of time up to a maximum of one year. Some violations carry an automatic expulsion, such as bringing a firearm into school or drug distribution. Procedures for dealing with behaviors which incur disciplinary action and reporting requirements are part of state statute.
Colorado law requires that all children between the ages of seven and sixteen must attend school. Therefore, an expelled student must have options during the time of expulsion such as alternative schools, home-schooling or private schools. Educational options are explained to expelled students and their parent/s or guardian/s. Options in school districts can vary from attending an independent partner school, receiving homebound education, or accessing classes online to maintain credits. Cost also varies for these options. Some districts partner in funding with independent institutions or cover the cost of other options through the district. However, if funding for educational options does not exist, the cost is the responsibility of the parent/s or guardian/s. If a student is expelled and is 16 or older, the district has no authority to keep the student in an educational system and the choice to continue is up to the student. For specific options and requirements in Larimer County, contact the individual school districts.
What this chart shows: Suspensions and Expulsions in Larimer County School Districts, 2000-01 to 2004-05
Data Source: Colorado Department of Education
What this chart shows: Suspensions and Expulsions as a Percentage of Actions Taken in Larimer County School Districts, 2004-05
Data Source: Colorado Department of Education
What this chart shows: Disciplinary Actions Taken Involving Male & Female Students by Race/Ethnicity - Larimer County School Districts, 2004-05
Data Source: Colorado Department of Education
What these data tell us:
State statutes were changed prior to the 2000-01 school year, adding incidents requiring disciplinary actions and changing reporting requirements. All schools began recording incidents by statutory category, resulting in more consistent recording and reporting. More recently, suspensions increased 7% from 2003 to 2004. From 2000 to 2004, expulsion numbers fluctuated annually, with the five year low occurring in 2003 (45 students). However, that same year the total number of suspensions was at a peak (4,817). District officials state there is no single reason or action for fluctuations in the number of students being expelled in a given year. However, District personnel observed increases in multiple students participating in a single violation. For example, if three students assault another student, all three are expelled.Since the incidents at Columbine High School in 1999, Colorado school districts have moved toward implementation of 'zero tolerance' policies. These policies leave teachers little or no discretion in matters of discipline and have had an effect on the number of disciplinary actions taken since. Behaviors and actions by students that were once dealt with more moderately now command immediate disciplinary action such as suspension, expulsion and referral to law enforcement. For example, bringing a squirt gun to school is grounds for immediate expulsion, as it resembles a real firearm.
'In School Suspension' was the predominant disciplinary action taken in Park School District in 2004-05. The difference between 'In' and 'Out of School Suspension' at Thompson School District was only 1.1%. Poudre School District had more 'Out of' than 'In School Suspensions' by almost 7%. Thompson School District had the largest percentage of actions taken resulting in expulsion (1.4% or 30 Students) followed by Poudre (1.1% or 21 students) and Park (0.3% or 1 student) School Districts.
The distribution of disciplinary actions among racial/ethnic groups and between genders has similarities to the percentages of total enrollment by race and ethnicity in Larimer County School Districts. White (Not Hispanic) students had the highest percentage of actions taken in 2004-05 (males 77.3% and females 73.8%) while Hispanic students had the second highest percentage (males 17.5% and females 21.5%). In overall district enrollment, White (not Hispanic) students represented 80.3% of the total enrollment with the next largest group being Hispanic students at 14.6%. However, when looking solely at the female student population, Hispanic females appear over represented in disciplinary actions (21.5% of disciplinary actions in comparison to 14.2% of total female enrollment in 2004). Available data indicate that this trend has been evident for the past five years. School officials do not have a clear reason for this trend.
Zero Tolerance policies and changes in reporting may account for some of the ups and downs. Also, as these data represent total actions and not unduplicated students, a handful of students getting into trouble several times during the school year would add to the overall figures. Data are tracked for reporting purposes but there is no detailed analysis of the data at this time.
Some of the schools in the Poudre and Thompson School Districts will have instituted the State-sponsored Positive Behavior Support Initiative by the 2006 school year. The purpose of this Initiative is to develop school-wide strategies to assist students in achieving needed social and learning outcomes and to prevent problem behaviors. Some officials hope by instituting this project, they will have a better opportunity to track behavior patterns, perform analysis and look for solutions.
Additional Information:
In Larimer County School Districts, breaking any law constitutes a Referral to Law Enforcement, but does not necessarily result in expulsion. Likewise, there are also actions that result in expulsion that do not constitute a referral to law enforcement. For example, Habitually Disruptive is a category used when a student has committed three willful or overt harmful actions towards fellow students, the school or the community. These categories are part of a type of 'three strikes and you're out' classification which can lead to expulsion. However, these actions may not call for a referral to law enforcement. Possessing a firearm or any form of harmful weapon on school grounds is an example of something that would result in a referral to law enforcement and automatic expulsion.
Actions/Classifications That Can Lead to Expulsion - Larimer County School Districts
|
2004-05 |
Referred to Law Enforcement |
Habitually Disruptive |
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|
School District |
Number |
% of All Actions/ Classifications |
Number |
% of All Actions/ Classifications |
|
Park |
1 |
0.02% |
0 |
0.00% |
|
Poudre |
77 |
1.61% |
2 |
0.04% |
|
Thompson |
236 |
4.92% |
0 |
0.00% |
|
Totals: |
314 |
6.55% |
2 |
0.04% |
On Compass-
- ACT Scores
- Charges Filed - Juveniles
- CSAP scores
- Drop-Out Rates
- Enrollment - K-12, Public School
- Enrollment - Public, Home-Based, & Non-Public
- Enrollment - Special Education
- Ethnicity - Demographics
- Funding Per Pupil
- High School Graduation Rate ( ethnicity, school district)
- Juvenile Arrests
- Juvenile Probation
- Pupil/ Teacher Ratio
- Teachers - Ethnicity & Gender
- Ask Colorado - Interactive online librarian service from Colorado libraries
- Colorado Department of Education
- Park School District
- Poudre School District
- Thompson School District
Standards or Target: N/A
Data Tables:
Suspensions and Expulsions in Larimer County School Districts
|
School Year |
Suspensions |
Expulsions |
|
2000-01 |
4,282 |
62 |
|
2001-02 |
4,557 |
49 |
|
2002-03 |
4,490 |
55 |
|
2003-04 |
4,817 |
45 |
|
2004-05 |
4,425 |
52 |
Suspensions and Expulsions, Larimer County School Districts
|
2004-05 |
Classroom Suspension or Teacher Removal |
In School Suspension |
Out of School Suspension |
Expulsion |
Totals
|
||||
|
Number |
% |
Number |
% |
Number |
% |
Number |
% |
||
|
Park |
0 |
0.0% |
200 |
68.5% |
91 |
31.2% |
1 |
0.3% |
292 |
|
Poudre |
444 |
22.5% |
687 |
34.9% |
819 |
41.6% |
21 |
1.1% |
1,971 |
|
Thompson |
10 |
0.5% |
1,097 |
49.5% |
1,077 |
48.6% |
30 |
1.4% |
2,214 |
|
TOTALS: |
454 |
10.1% |
1,984 |
44.3% |
1,987 |
44.4% |
52 |
1.2% |
4,477 |
Disciplinary Actions Taken by Race/Ethnicity
|
2004-05 MALE STUDENTS |
All Disciplinary Actions Larimer County School Districts |
|
|
Number |
% of Total Actions |
|
|
American Indian |
62 |
1.7% |
|
Asian/Pacific Islander |
38 |
1.0% |
|
Black Non Hispanic |
89 |
2.5% |
|
Hispanic |
637 |
17.5% |
|
White |
2,806 |
77.3% |
|
TOTAL: |
3,632 |
100% |
|
2004-05 FEMALE STUDENTS |
All Disciplinary Actions Larimer County School Districts |
|
|
Number |
% of Total Actions |
|
|
American Indian |
24 |
2.0% |
|
Asian/Pacific Islander |
5 |
0.4% |
|
Black Non Hispanic |
28 |
2.3% |
|
Hispanic |
261 |
21.5% |
|
White |
895 |
73.8% |
|
TOTAL: |
1,213 |
100% |