Suspension and expulsion rates plague public education locally and nationally

Data from the California Department of Education indicates that Butte County has higher suspension and expulsion rates than the state average.

The following bar graphs include information from the California Department of Education's Suspension and Expulsion Report for 2012-2013. 

Butte County ranks 14 out of 58 counties in California for highest suspension rate.

It ranks seven out of 58 counties in California for highest expulsion rate. 

These rates are indicative of the issues facing discipline in public education not just in California but in the nation. 

Research from the U.S. Department of Education indicates an increase in suspensions and expulsions since the '70s and that these exclusionary practices are unfairly targeting students of certain races and students with disabilities. 

During the 2011 school year alone, more than 3 million public school students received out-of-school suspensions and over 100,000 students were expelled. And African-American students are over three times more likely than their White peers to be suspended or expelled. 

The Department of Education issued a guidance policy in January of this year to help schools combat these issues and improve school climate and engagement. 

With this new policy in place and the pressure from the federal government to crack down on the number of suspensions and expulsions, teachers and administrators will have to implement different disciplinary methods. 

It is a national issue that too many students are being dismissed from classes, whether it be through expulsions or suspensions, and missing out on the thing that they are supposed to be getting from school: an education. Another issue of concern is that students are being unfairly disciplined based upon race and disability.