House Resolutions Decry Over-Discipline in Schools, Urge Tech Access for Those With Disabilities 

"Technological access for those with disabilities and curbing the school-to-prison pipeline were the focus of two resolutions brought by the Commission on Disability Rights before the ABA House of Delegates on Tuesday. Both were passed with overwhelming support.

Resolution 116B was prompted by concern for the “disproportionate impact of over-discipline on students of color, students with disabilities, and LGBTQ students, resulting in disparate push-out rates and juvenile justice system or prison interactions.”

To that end, the resolution urges that laws and policies be adopted to largely prohibit out-of-school suspension and expulsion for children in pre-kindergarten through second grade. The two exceptions cited would be if “(1) the student poses an imminent threat of serious physical harm to self or others that cannot be reduced or eliminated through the use of age-appropriate school-based behavior interventions and supports, and (2) the duration of the exclusion is limited to the shortest period practicable.”

“Whether there’s a disability, whether there’s a problem at home, suspension is not the answer to these issues,” said Maryland delegate Robert T. Gonzales, chair of the Commission on Disability Rights.

For that same pre-K to second-grade age group, the resolution urges that schools contact law enforcement “only where there is an imminent threat of serious physical harm to the student or others that cannot be reduced or eliminated through the use of age-appropriate school-based behavioral interventions and supports.”

“The decriminalization of this kind of activity is extremely important,” Gonzales said.

The resolution also calls for required ongoing training for teachers, administrators and other school staff on subjects like “functional behavior assessments and behavior intervention plans, the implementation of social emotional learning programs, the use of restorative practices and trauma-informed practices, the identification and evaluation of students with disabilities, and the implementation of individualized academic and behavior supports for students with disabilities.”

In Resolution 116C, the House voted to urge courts and government entities to interpret the Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act as applying to technology, and goods and services delivered via technology..."

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