LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Jefferson County Public Schools will no longer use suspension to discipline preschool through third grade students in most situations.
The Jefferson County Board of Education voted to update the Student Support and Behavior Intervention Handbook Tuesday, adding language that says a principal can ask an assistant superintendent to approve "briefly" suspending pre-K through third grade students who break the law.
Officials said the policy is meant to support the emotional and mental health development of students, saying suspensions have negative impacts on students in that age group.
Linda Duncan (District 5) was the only board member who did not vote to approve the handbook changes.
"Sometimes we have egregious offenses that aren't law offenses and what we're doing when we don't use suspensions as an option is we're taking parent intervention completely out," Duncan said. "There is no parent intervention in this, it's just we're going to handle it all at school."
JCPS Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio said he does not feel like a one-day suspension would make much of a difference in stopping younger students from acting up in the future.
He also said millions of dollars in federal funding could be at risk without changes.
According to the Education Commission of the States, 16 states and D.C. have either banned or limited suspensions and expulsions for younger students. Indiana law requires the state's discipline plan to reduce school suspensions and limit referrals to law enforcement.
Alternatives to out-of-school discipline are often called restorative practices, connecting students with counseling and support to repair disruptions they have caused. Training to bring restorative practices to all JCPS schools started last year.
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