NC's 'alarming' disparity of black student arrests among worst in country

Law enforcement arrested more than 600 North Carolina students on public school grounds, during off-campus school activities or on school transportation during the 2015-16 school year, according to the latest data from the U.S. Department of Education.

In North Carolina, 9.2 out of every 10,000 black students were arrested, compared to 1.6 white students. Only three other states – West Virginia, Iowa and Rhode Island – had a higher disparity between the arrest rates of black and white students.

About 147 out of every 1,000 black students were suspended from North Carolina schools in 2015-16. That's compared to about 44 white students out of every 1,000.

The statistics are "alarming, but not surprising," says Keith Sutton, president of the North Carolina Caucus of Black School Board Members.

"The disproportionality has been there and has been there for some time," said Sutton, who serves on the Wake County Board of Education. "I mean, it's been rather persistent both at the district level, across districts [and] across the state."

Black students were suspended from North Carolina public schools at more than three times the rate of white students during the 2015-16 school year. Despite making up one-fourth of the student population in North Carolina, one out of every two students suspended was black.

In Wake County, black students represent less than a quarter of the public schools' population, but they account for almost two-thirds of the suspensions, according to a report presented to the school board in March. Statistics show 61 percent of Wake County elementary school students suspended were black children in the fourth or fifth grade.

Report: Black elementary school students being suspended from Wake schools at disproportionate rate

The disparity exists nationally as well. During the 2015-16 school year, black students in U.S. public schools were suspended, expelled and referred to law enforcement much more frequently than their white peers. And the disparity is growing.

While black students represented 15 percent of all enrolled students nationally in 2015-16, they accounted for 31 percent of children referred to police or arrested. The disparity is 5 percentage points higher than in 2013-14, when such data was last collected.

The student arrest and suspension numbers are likely to add to an already tense national debate about what causes such racial disparities. Civil rights groups believe that racial bias is at play and insist that federal protections are necessary. Some experts counter that forcing schools to adopt milder disciplinary practices makes classrooms unsafe.

In North Carolina, some education leaders say the answer may lie in more funding for school counselors, social workers, psychologists and nurses.

"That can help kids in terms of regulating their behavior and any mental health or behavior issues they may have," Sutton said. "Children deal with issues of hunger, abuse, homelessness, and those things eventually find their way into the school building."

Gov. Roy Cooper has proposed an extra $40 million in the state budget to hire up to 500 nurses and counselors for schools statewide. Lawmakers also are seeking funding for additional school nurses. The North Carolina Association of Educators is pushing lawmakers to fund at least 500 additional school nurses, social workers and counselors.

"Our schools are starving for these resources right now," said Mark Jewell, president of the North Carolina Association of Educators.

Study: Need for school nurses growing in NC, could cost $79M a year

North Carolina school nurses serve more than 2,300 students on average, far above the federally recommended ratio of one nurse per 750 students, according to state statistics. Last school year, North Carolina school nurses had 17,000 encounters with students directly related to mental health.

"I think what we’re really looking at here is how poverty is affecting our students across the state of North Carolina. And poverty, of course, is directed right to trauma," Jewell said. "Our students of color are disproportionately affected by poverty. They’re coming into our schools that are underfunded and less resourced."

How to punish students who misbehave is an ongoing conversation and often brings up concerns of bias and racial discrimination.

Catherine Lhamon, chairwoman of the Commission on Civil Rights, who served as the top civil rights official at the education department during the Obama administration, said the latest national arrest and suspension data "should cause alarm for all of us."

“Students were and are treated in very different ways. The reality is that those students experience discrimination," she said.

Under President Barack Obama, the U.S. Education Department instructed schools to move away from harsh punishments and instead favor positive behavior interventions, such as counseling. It also told schools to examine their discipline data and fix racial disparities if there were any. Current U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is considering scrapping those rules.

Mike Petrilli, president of the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute, says the 2014 guidance under Obama should be done away with. He argues that it has made educators reluctant to punish bad behavior and has led to disorder in classrooms. While he agrees that racial bias plays a role, he said children who are subjected to poverty and trauma are more likely to act out at school.

"The numbers are the symptom, not the disease. The disease is about ineffective schools, it's about unequal life circumstances," Petrilli said. "We've got to address the underlying causes of these disparities. Some of them may be racial bias in the way that discipline is doled out, but it's also differences in student behavior that relate to differences in the challenges groups are facing."

As a Wake County school board member, Sutton said he has seen some inconsistency in how discipline is handled at schools.

"That’s sort of a tough one in terms of, how do you address that?" he said. "That’s sort of the challenge that we deal with as board members and the [NC Caucus of Black School Board Members] is, how do we implement policy that again allows more discretion and flexibility but at the same time some level of consistency as well?"

Compassion and understanding should be part of the discussion, Sutton says. He recalled an instance earlier this school year when a student punched a school's bathroom wall and paper towel dispenser after his girlfriend broke up with him. He was arrested and charged with destruction of property.

"That’s the kind of thing that I think, where’s the compassion? Where’s the understanding?" Sutton said. "And I think a law enforcement officer can put a hand on a child and say, 'Hey, let’s go outside and talk a little bit. Let’s figure out some other way to blow off your steam. I understand you’re upset, and I understand why but let’s not tear up the school. Let’s figure out how we can address that.'"

Sutton says he sympathizes with school resource officers, who must make quick decisions when dealing with unruly students. He would like to see them get more training to understand students' mental health and behavioral issues.

"I think they certainly have a role to play in maintaining a safe and orderly environment. But at the same time we want to make sure that school resource officers are well trained, particularly in terms of dealing with students. It’s probably not quite the same as when you’re out on the streets or a normal beat, so to speak," Sutton said. "So having the care, compassion and understanding in terms of working with students and in a school environment … I think that they can be helpful. There’s certainly a place for them."

The governor's budget proposal calls for $10 million to pay for more school resource officers. One proposal in the N.C. House calls for an extra $1.8 million in the state budget to provide grants to school districts to hire SROs for elementary and middle schools, while a second would require all SROs to undergo standardized training and annual continuing education. Districts also would be required to report every year how many SROs they employ and how the positions are funded.

If Sutton had his way, state education leaders and lawmakers would find ways to provide more funding and opportunities for professional development and training not only for SROs, but also for teachers and other school staff.

"I’ve talked to a few of our principals and say, 'Well, what’s the biggest issue you’re dealing with? What’s sort of the big driver behind the behavior challenges?' And they say kids are coming to school angry," Sutton said. "Kids are coming to school mad, again, because they’re dealing with issues of abuse ... violence in the neighborhood and the community, financial issues that have resulted in homelessness ... hunger."

Sutton is a supporter of restorative justice, which encourages victims and offenders to mediate a restitution agreement that satisfies them both. He believes that can reduce the number of suspensions and arrests. The one thing he isn't sure of – why black students are arrested at North Carolina schools at a much higher rate than white students when compared with other states.

"I really don’t know how to explain that," he said.