[Dignity_in_Schools] DSC Letter to Office of Civil Rights, New Report on School Resource Officers, DSC Job Announcement

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Dignity in Schools Campaign Listserv

In This Issue

DSC Letter to Office of Civil Rights

New Web Resources - Report on School Resource Officers; New Website on Youth in Care

DSC Coordinator Job Announcement

About the DSC

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May 2010

Dear Friends,We encourage you to get involved with the DSC Alternatives to Zero-Tolerance Working Group engaged in ongoing advocacy at the federal and local levels to include school discipline reform in ESEA reauthorization. Read updates below and join us for a conference call on May 7.

Alternatives to Zero-Tolerance WG Updates

DSC Submits Letter to Office of Civil Rights to Expand Data Collection on Discipline

On May 3 the Dignity in Schools Campaign submitted a sign-on letter commenting on the proposed extension of the US Department of Education's Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC). The CRDC is our best national survey of the disciplinary practices of schools and districts.

The letter asks the Department of Education to expand the survey to all schools nationwide and to conduct the survey every year (currently, the CDRC surveys only half of the nation's school districts every two years). The Dignity in Schools Campaign also recommends adding additional reporting categories, including pre-kindergarten disciplinary data, information on alternative schools, school arrests and referrals to law enforcement, and data on incarcerated youth.

Upcoming ESEA Local Advocacy Strategies Call

Friday May 7, 2010

3pm est, 2pm cst, 1pm mst, 12pm pst

Call-in: Participant Code: 467177#Host Code: 4671778#

The DSC will discuss how we can raise awareness and build support for discipline reform in ESEA through outreach at the US Social Forum in June and by supporting the upcoming AEJ Day of Action and Lobby Day in July.

New Resources on the Web

First Do No Harm - Policy Brief on School Resource Officers

The Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School released a policy brief, entitled, First, Do No Harm: How Educators and Police Can Work Together More Effectively to Preserve School Safety and Protect Vulnerable Students, that examines the history and impact of school resource officer programs, focusing on a series of interviews that the authors conducted in 16 school districts in Massachusetts.

The brief identifies the reasons for the large expansion in police presence in schools during the past decade, and summarizes existing research about how the deployment of police in schools has changed school environments. In addition, it offers recommendations for policy reforms intended to maximize the benefits of police presence in schools, while reducing the risk of unnecessary criminalization of vulnerable youth.

New Website for Advocates Working with Youth in Care

Ed Connect is a new online community and clearinghouse for all people helping California's foster care children succeed in school. A project of the National Center for Youth Law (NCYL), the website features a dynamic database of information that all adults working to support foster youth can use in their daily practice.

There are resources devoted to a myriad of topics, including school enrollment and stability, state and federal legislation, dependency and juvenile court proceedings, and mental health. Ed Connect also provides a forum for users to participate in conversations and ask questions of subject matter experts across the state. The website features local and statewide news and events.

New DSC Job Announcement

Job Announcement for Dignity in Schools Campaign Coordinator

The Dignity in Schools Campaign is excited to circulate a job announcement to hire our first staff person to support the exciting and expanding work of the campaign! The position will be based in New York City and will help support our national activities and the work of our member groups.

We encourage you to circulate the job announcement to your listservs!

Email coordinator@... for more information.

About the Dignity in Schools Campaign (DSC)

The Dignity in Schools Campaign is a national coalition of advocates, community-based organizations, educators, lawyers and policymakers working together to seek human rights-based solutions to the systemic problem of pushout in U.S. schools. Visit the website to learn about membership and get involved in the campaign. The DSC has a Core Group that oversees the project, Working Group Members that

help shape our work and participate in our ongoing projects, and Allied Organizations that believe in and support the campaign.Core Group Members:

Biehl, Ohio Poverty Law Center Cregor, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. Hirji, Children's Rights Litigation Committee, American Bar Association Lambertson, Advocate, Colorado Llorente, Advocate, Chicago, IL Liz Sullivan, National Economic and Social Rights Initiative Lori , ACLU of Illinois

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