According to a March 2014 report released by the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, more Black students are severely punished at school than white students despite the fact that more white students are enrolled in schools.
The study reveals that this begins as early as preschool: “Black children represent 18% of preschool enrollment, but 48% of children receiving more than one out-of-school suspension; in comparison, white students represent 43% of preschool enrollment but 26% of preschool children receiving more than one out of school suspension.”
The statistics shift slightly when looking at grades overall, but still do not favor Black students. White students represent 51% of the population, while Blacks make up 16%. However, this is disproportionate when looking at the number of in-school suspensions, as 32% of them are given to Black students, compared to 40% for white students. An instance of a single out-of-school suspension sees just a slight uptick for Blacks (36% for white students, 33% for Black students).
