The pandemic paused the US school-to-prison pipeline: potential lessons learned
AUTHOR(S)
Sarah Y. Vinson; Randee J. Waldman
Published: September 2020
Journal: The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health
A global pandemic caused society to radically and quickly reconfigure.
Schools, wary of the health risks of in-person instruction, shifted to
virtual learning. Although not ideal in many respects, this shift placed
adolescents in the USA out of the reach of harsh school disciplinary
procedures (ie, zero tolerance policies, out-of-school suspensions,
expulsions, and law enforcement referrals), contributing to a drastic
reduction in juvenile court referrals nationally. The school-to-prison
pipeline paused. Characterised by school disciplinary approaches placing
adolescents on a trajectory to juvenile and then adult criminal legal
systems, this pipeline is most pronounced for Black and Latinx students,
students with disabilities, and in schools serving impoverished
communities. Although this survey focuses mainly on the USA, this topic has relevance in
other societies with public education, substantial income inequality,
and racial inequities in their justice systems.
Sarah Y. Vinson; Randee J. Waldman September 2020 The pandemic paused the US school-to-prison pipeline: potential lessons learned . The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, vol. 4 (11)