Durbin chairs first hearing on school to prison pipeline
Source: Daily Herald (suburban Chicago)
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin Wednesday chaired the first federal hearing looking at the relationship between schools and the criminal justice system. The hearing follows a recent change in Illinois law prompted by an attack on an Elgin teacher and subsequent Daily Herald investigation.
Since the 1990s, Durbin’s office noted, many students nationwide have been pushed out of the classroom and into the courts for relatively minor, nonviolent offenses. Concerns about school violence and a growing awareness of bullying led many schools to hire police and institute “zero-tolerance” policies which in turn have resulted in an increase in suspensions, expulsions, and in-school arrests
Durbin, a Springfield Democrat, questioned how exactly and why the culture of schools has changed so much over the years.
“Is there a difference in the relationship between schools and families and teachers?” Durbin asked. “Is there a difference in the threat to the safety and order in schools?”
Read more: http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20121212/news/712129741/
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Yes, I get this is a problem-- but given the current ten or so MUCH larger, more crucial problems facing our nation, Sen. Durbin needs to prioritize much better-- unless of course he's looking for something to distract from the larger problems, because he has zero clue as to solving those problems.
