Ending Harmful Discipline to Create Safer Schools

All students deserve safe and welcoming schools that do not use harmful discipline and school police to punish young people.

To achieve this, schools must be able to invest in the people and programs that build strong campus climates and foster the relationships that keep everyone safe.

Learn more about IDRA’s work to build safe and welcoming schools for all students below.

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Ending the School-to-Prison and School-to-Deportation Pipelines

IDRA works to make sure schools do not push students out of the classroom through school policing and exclusionary discipline, like suspensions, alternative school placements, expulsions and corporal punishment. These approaches do not work. They limit student success, are costly and disproportionately harm Black students, Latino students, students with disabilities and LGBTQ students. Instead of pushing young people out, schools must invest in strategies to pull them in.

Using Effective Strategies to Create Safe and Welcoming Schools for All Students

Safe and welcoming schools are community-oriented, with families, school staff and students taking a leadership role in shaping educational policy and practice. They are well-staffed with trained counselors, social workers, nurses and other critical personnel.

IDRA trains and supports families, teachers, students and district leaders, focusing on research-based strategies and programs like restorative practices, culturally sustaining pedagogy and ethnic studies courses.

Learn more about IDRA’s policy recommendations for Texas.

Resources

Changing Policy

Texas Should Eliminate Harmful Hardening and Policing Mandates and Invest in Safe and Supportive Schools – IDRA Testimony on HB 2, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Select Committee on Educational Enrichment and Opportunity, November 10, 2023

Support the Protecting our Students in Schools Act – Why the Federal Government Must Act Now to End Corporal Punishment – October 27, 2023

Texas Must Prioritize Evidence-Based Practices to Create Safe and Supportive Schools – IDRA Testimony On Senate Bill 11, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Senate Education Committee, May 11, 2023

Joint Testimony Against SB 9, submitted by IDRA, Texas Center for Justice and Equity, and Texas Appleseed to the Texas House Education Committee, May 9, 2023

Texas’ Crown Act Opens Doors for a Better Texas – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 567, submitted by Alisha Tuff to the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee, May 8, 2023

Texas Must Prioritize Evidence-Based Practices to Create Safe and Supportive Schools – IDRA Testimony On Senate Bill 11, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the House Public Education Committee, April 25, 2023 – See video

Texas Must Prohibit and Prevent Identity-based Bullying in Schools – IDRA Testimony for HB 4625, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Committee on Youth Health and Safety, April 17, 2023

Understanding Discipline Policies and Practices is Key to Strengthening School Safety and Student Success – IDRA Testimony for HB 4449, submitted by Alisha Tuff to the Texas House Committee on Youth Health and Safety, April 17, 2023 – See video

Joint Testimony in Opposition to Senate Bill 245 – Comments in Opposition to Senate Bill 245, submitted to the Texas Senate Education Committee, April 12, 2023, by IDRA, Texas Appleseed, Texas Center for Justice and Equity – See video

HB 3917 Provides Positive Framework for Students, Families and Schools to Address Chronic Absenteeism – Comments in Support of House Bill 3917, submitted to the Texas House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, April 10, 2023, by IDRA, Texas Appleseed, Texas Center for Justice and Equity, ACLU Texas, and National Association of Social Workers Texas

Reject Harmful Responses to Chronic Absenteeism, Such as Fines and Criminalization – Comments in Opposition to House Bill 3931 and House Bill 2725, submitted to the Texas House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, April 10, 2023, by IDRA, Texas Appleseed, Texas Center for Justice and Equity, ACLU Texas, and National Association of Social Workers Texas – See video

School Takeovers and Punishing Truancy Do Not Make Our Schools More Safe – IDRA Testimony Against Senate Bill 11, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Senate Education Committee, April 5, 2023

Hitting Hurts – It is Time to End Corporal Punishment in Texas Schools – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 772, submitted by Morgan Craven, J.D., to the Texas House Committee on Youth Health and Safety, April 3, 2023

Transparency of School Discipline Data and Policies Benefits Students and Families – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 2126, submitted by Alisha Tuff to the Texas House Youth Health and Safety Committee, April 3, 2023

Bill Filed: Texas Must Prohibit and Prevent Racial Bullying in Schools – Texas Senate Hispanic Caucus, Texas Legislative Black Caucus and IDRA Call on the Legislature to Protect Students from Identity-based Bullying and Harassment, March 10, 2023

Texas Should Prioritize Supporting Students and Educators, Not Expanding School Police and Guardians – IDRA Testimony Against House Bill 13, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, March 27, 2023

HB 3 Offers an Illusion of Safety but Fails to Invest in Real Solutions for Safe and Supportive Schools – IDRA Testimony Against House Bill 3, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, March 27, 2023

Texas’ CROWN Act Gives Every Texan a Fair Chance to Succeed Without Identity-Based Hair Discrimination – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 567, submitted by Alisha Tuff to the Texas House Committee of State Affairs, March 22, 2023

Children Need Education and Support, Not Zero Tolerance Discipline – IDRA Testimony against SB 9, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D. to the Texas Senate Education Committee, March 22, 2023

Testimony: Eliminate the Use of Harmful Restraints in Schools – IDRA Testimony for Senate Bill 133, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas Senate Committee on Education, March 8, 2023 See video

Testimony: Eliminate Bias and Discrimination Against Black Students – IDRA Public Comment for HB 392, Presented by Dr. Altheria Caldera to the Texas House State Affairs Committee, April 29, 2021

Testimony: HB 3485 Makes Discipline Data More Accessible to Parents and Families – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 3485, Presented by Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D., to the House Public Education Committee, April 13, 2021

Testimony: Texas Must End Juvenile Curfew Ordinances to Help Break the School-to-prison Pipeline – IDRA Testimony for HB 561, Submitted by Araceli García to the House Juvenile Justice and Family Issues Committee, April 12, 2021

Testimony: HB 822 Compromises Equitable Education Opportunities in the Name of School Safety, IDRA Testimony against HB 822, submitted by Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D., to the House Juvenile Justice & Family Issues Committee on March 29, 2021

Breaking the School-to-Prison and School-to-Deportation Pipelines – IDRA Texas Legislative Priority Brief

Protecting Children’s Health and Well-Being – IDRA & Partners Urge U.S. Congress to End Criminalization of Students in School, December 2, 2020

IDRA Endorses House Bill to End Corporal Punishment in Schools – Protecting Our Students in Schools Act of 2020, November 2020

IDRA School Policing letter to school district leaders, June 15, 2020

Article: An Overview of School Policing in the South, February 2020

Joint Testimony by the Educational Justice Coalition: Response to Public Interim Charge 1(f) to the Texas House Public Education Committee, September 30, 2020

Testimony: Implementation Rules for Texas school safety legislation

Testimony: Use Effective Discipline, Not Zero Tolerance

Testimony: Clearly Define the Role of Law Enforcement in Schools – Officers Should Not Be Called on to Handle School Disciplinary Matters

Testimony: African American Studies Course Will Have a Significant and Positive Impact on Students Across Texas, November 13, 2019