A 1184  A 4414

A 1184 – Requires school districts and charter schools to report discipline data on their websites and to Commissioner of Education

A 4414 – Requires public schools to report all student disciplinary actions; requires DOE to establish database and compile annual report concerning disparities in student disciplinary actions

A 1184 (Zwicker)  A 4414 (Conway, Verrelli, and Caputo) While we support the idea of collecting data on school disciplinary actions, we have some concerns regarding how the data is collected and disaggregated as outlined in both bills. We believe that the collection of disciplinary data on a monthly basis is too frequent and the disaggregation of data by the categories indicated in the bills may result in a loss of privacy depending on the size and population of a school district. For example, students who participate in free and reduced priced meal programs, students who receive special education services, as well as the LGBTQ status of students may become identifiable through these disciplinary data reports.

Also, we understand that the purpose of the bills is to ascertain discrepancies in discipline within schools and to create a list of recommendations to address these issues.

However, districts should be provided with additional supports and resources to change their disciplinary practices going forward. Furthermore, the legislature approved a bill to address adverse childhood experiences (ACES) and promote restorative justice practices in schools last year. The Restorative Justice in Education program was an important step in addressing school disciplinary practices and helping our students in a holistic way. We look forward to continuing to work with the legislature and Department of Education on this important issue.

NJEA asks that you support our position on A 1184 and A 4414.