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School-To-Prison Pipeline

Disrupting The System

Black students are disciplined at rates far beyond their share of the student population. This is not a perception issue. It is documented fact.

In the 2021–2022 school year:

  • Black boys were 8% of students but 22% of out-of-school suspensions
  • Black girls were 7% of students but 13% of out-of-school suspensions
    Source: U.S. Department of Education Civil Rights Data Collection

Research has consistently found no evidence that Black students misbehave more than other students.
Source: American Psychological Association, Zero Tolerance Task Force

This gap reflects how schools respond to behavior, not the behavior itself.

The Pushout Effect

When schools remove students from the classroom, they remove opportunity.

Suspensions and expulsions lead to:

  • Loss of instructional time
  • Lower academic performance
  • Higher absenteeism
  • Increased dropout risk

The National Academies found that exclusionary discipline strongly predicts academic failure and later incarceration.

This is what educators call pushout.
Students are not always told to leave. They are pushed out over time.

The School-to-Prison Pipeline

Pushout does not end at dropping out. It often leads to system involvement.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office study found that Black students are:

  • More likely to be referred to law enforcement
  • More likely to be arrested at school

A Texas study of nearly one million students found:

  • Nearly half of heavily disciplined students entered the juvenile justice system
    Source: Council of State Governments Justice Center

Once a child enters that system, the odds shift.
Court involvement increases the likelihood of continued system contact.

The Human Impact

This is not abstract. This is what happens in real life:

  • A young Black boy gets suspended for minor behavior.
  • He falls behind in class.
  • He disengages.
  • He gets labeled a problem.
  • He gets removed again.

Now he spends more time outside school than inside it.

From there, the street starts to compete with the classroom.

The long-term cost is measurable:
High school dropouts earn about $200,000 less over a lifetime than graduates.
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office

This is economic damage to families and communities.

What the Data Shows About School Climate

Students recognize the unfairness.

In 2023:

  • 23.1% of Black students reported unfair discipline
  • This rate was higher than the national average
    Source: CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey

Students who report unfair discipline are also more likely to:

  • Feel unsafe
  • Skip school
  • Experience depression

This is not discipline. This is disconnection.

What NBPA Stands For

We reject systems that remove children instead of developing them.

We believe:

  • Most Black children want to learn
  • Most Black children want structure and support
  • Schools must engage, not exclude

What Must Change

The solution is not softer discipline. It’s fair, effective discipline that keeps students in school.

NBPA will advocate for:

  • Transparent discipline data from every school district
  • Limits on suspensions for minor behavior
  • Restorative discipline practices that reduce repeat incidents
  • Teacher training in classroom management and bias awareness
  • Strong parent advocacy and legal accountability

Research shows schools that adopt restorative practices reduce suspensions and improve school climate.
Source: CDC, Learning Policy Institute

The Bottom Line

When a system removes one group of students more than others for the same behavior, it is not neutral.

It is producing outcomes.

And those outcomes shape lives.

Call to Action

If your child has been unfairly disciplined, you need to act.

Join NBPA.
Demand transparency.
Hold schools accountable.

Because your child should be in a classroom, not pushed out of it.