Dive Brief:
- Connecticut's efforts to reduce school arrests is making promising strides. In 2014, 1,400 school arrests were referred to state juvenile courts, down from about 250 from 2013.
- The state is particularly trying to combat arrests made over minor issues. While data show massive decreases in juvenile arrests — a 59% decrease in Connecticut and 46% nationally over the last decade — zero-tolerance punishment focused on petty crimes and minor offenses has risen.
- The push to bring down school arrests comes as data increasingly suggests that students who are expelled or placed in the juvenile justice system are more likely to become repeat offenders and/or not graduate.
Dive Insight:
The Associated Press cites education officials who say after the 1999 Columbine massacre, police presence on campuses increased. This likely played into the increase in zero-tolerance policies nationwide.
Much of Connecticut's move to decrease school arrests comes from a decision made by the state Judicial Branch. In 2011, the court told the state's school superintendents and police chiefs that it would no longer accept juvenile court referrals for students arrested for minor misbehaviors like fighting or being disrespectful to teachers.
Connecticut's decision to back away from zero-tolerance punishment is in line with national trends. In Indiana, for example, commissioners in Tippecanoe County recently approved the development of a new curriculum called "Teaching the Teen Brain," which aims to bring down the number of student suspensions — specifically those involving minor offenses. In the 2013-14 school year, Indiana Department of Education data indicates that 30% of Tippecanoe County's suspensions resulted from "verbal aggression, profanity or defiance."