Effects Of School To Prison Pipeline

There has always been some level of student’s misconduct in school; however school recently changed the methods and polices to deal with delinquent behavior. Schools implemented zero tolerance policies which are punitive and based on deterrence theory. Therefore, many juveniles receive harsh punishments such as expulsion, suspension, and entrance to the juvenile justice system; creating the school-to-prison pipeline. The school-to-prison pipeline has damaging effects on an individual as the student is pushed out of schools; many students then find it difficult to gain an education and become stigmatized within society, thus pushing them to further delinquency. This pipeline tends to contribute to the racial and learning capability disparity …show more content…
The media initiated fear within the community, therefore stirring the pot for moral panics to take hold of the system. Juvenile crime rates were on the decline as data shows “over the past two decades, from nearly 200 victimizations per 1,000 students in 1992 to fewer than 50 victimizations per 1,000 students in 2011” (Curtis 2014). However, the media covered multiple stories of the violent youthful predator through portrayals of school shootings (Fowler 2011). Legislators, parents, and citizens were disheartened with the level of violence portrayed in the media. This increased the fear that students in their area might be victimized in similar matter. Therefore, legislators implemented the Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 (GFSA) in order to protect students from violent attacks. GFSA prevent violent firearm offenses on school campuses, as the policy held that: 1) student who brings a firearm to a school zone will result in their immediate expulsion for a year, 2) the school would also report the issue to local law enforcement (Heitzeg 2009). This seemed reasonable to protect students from being violently harmed in school, especially with the overzealous media coverage. Heizeg explains the problem with the policy came throughout time, as the GFSA expanded regulations to include other weapons. The account of Reece’s son explains this very aspect: as her child was suspended for having a “weapon” which was a wooden …show more content…
However, the policies changed the ways schools dealt with student infractions and misbehavior. Schools criminalize behaviors such as: weapons, alcohol/drugs use, threatening behavior, fighting in school, tardiness, and disorderly conduct; therefore instead of having the issues addressed by the principal in his/her office, the individual is suspended, expelled, or referred to the criminal justice system regardless of the offense or mitigating circumstances (Heitzeg 2009). This drastically decreased the discretion of the schools officials. Instead the school administers promoted a tough on crime mentality, taking a strong and harsh stance on infractions: “In 2004, there were over 3.2 million school suspensions and over 106,000 expulsions; in some states, the number of suspensions exceeds 10 percent of the number of students enrolled” (Kim, Losen, and Hewitt 2010). Instead of giving students an education, which is highly valued in our society, the schools pushed them away from attaining it. The punitive nature led some to becoming adjudicated and placed within the juvenile hall. My interview corroborated this aspect as he described, “There are not as many violent offenders as there were in the past. I say this because we used to use restraints every day, but now we use them maybe twice a month. Many enter for less serious offense, but we make sure