Communities In Schools, Gallup Poll on School Discipline

Arlington, Va. – A new Gallup survey, commissioned by Communities In Schools, reveals that more than half of adults surveyed said teachers are not being prepared to effectively handle discipline issues in the classroom. Almost 30 percent of respondents said they were concerned that unsafe school or classroom environments would result from poorly handled discipline issues and 20 percent cited the disruption of learning as their top concern.    

The poll was released today at the 2019 Milliken Dialogues and Policy Summit, held at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. The Summit explored policies, research, and practices that can help schools address the underlying issues that affect student behavior through an integrated focus on social, emotional, and academic development. The innovative school practices being implemented across the country and policy recommendations discussed at the Summit were also published in a new Community Matters report which can be downloaded here.

“The number of people concerned about the handling of school discipline is sobering but not surprising,” said Dale Erquiaga, president and CEO of Communities In Schools. “This isn’t a failure on the part of our teachers, but rather a broken system that doesn’t support school staff to help kids who come to school with emotional and behavioral problems that are sometimes brought on by trauma in their homes and communities.”

According to the Gallup survey, 90 percent of the general public felt that “increased efforts to foster positive school environment” and “more training for school administrators and teachers on discipline practices” were among the most effective school discipline strategies. Solutions that focus on the whole child, including more access to mental health services, and development of social and emotional skills were also all perceived as effective.

In the newly released Community Matters report, Communities In Schools lays out specific recommendations for state policies that can help create safer school environments. They include:

  • Strengthening reporting requirements in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) by including both regular disaggregation and analysis of student behavior and discipline rate data;
  • Establishing a statewide protocol for implementing integrated student supports;
  • Including trauma recovery resources in crisis response;
  • Including a non-academic needs assessment in Comprehensive Support and Improvement plans;
  • Including a non-academic needs assessment for Targeted Support and Improvement plans.

“Young people face a wide range of challenges and the burden of dealing with these challenges should not rest on their shoulders alone. Adults, from policymakers to classroom teachers, play an important role to foster safe and productive learning environments,” said Tiffany Miller, vice president of policy at Communities In Schools. “Our organization is committed to partnering with schools and other youth-serving groups to provide supports that can address the needs of the whole child to help ensure that children are not unnecessarily missing critical classroom time because of underlying issues that present itself as behavioral issues in school.”

Featured

  • Three U.S. Universities Install Acre Security Access Control Platform

    Cloud-native physical and digital security solutions company Acre Security recently announced that it has deployed its access control platform at three major universities in the U.S., according to a news release. Acre partnered with Atrium Campus to provide coverage for more than 69,000 students at the University of Virginia (UVA), George Mason University, and Rockhurst University.

  • Zurn Releases New Ductile Iron Frame Trench Drain System

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently released the newest addition to its Train Drench portfolio, the Ductile Iron Frame Trench Drain System, according to a news release. The product is designed for heavy-duty applications like airports, military, universities, and more.

  • FAU Starts Construction on Holocaust and Jewish Studies Building

    Florida Atlantic University recently began construction on a new academic building for its campus in Boca Raton, Fla., according to university news. The Kurt and Marilyn Wallach Holocaust and Jewish Studies Building will stand two stories, measure in at 22,000 square feet, and play home to the university’s Holocaust education and Jewish studies programs.

  • KI Wall Demonstrates New Solutions at NeoCon 2025

    KI Wall attended NeoCon 2025 in Chicago, Ill., last month to showcase its new architectural wall systems and collaborations, according to a news release. Its customizable, design-forward wall solutions are intended to support creativity in work, education, and healthcare environments.

Digital Edition