Legislation that would ban suspension and limit exclusion of K-3 students for non-violent incidents was introduced in the House Education Policy committee on Jan. 18. 

“As a mother raising a Black son, I have dealt with this personally,” said Richardson. “The message my son got from his experience was that it didn’t matter how he appeared in school, he was a problem. He was a problem if he was talking, he was a problem if he wasn’t talking. And, ultimately, he was dismissed from class for not speaking.” 

According to Richardson, the legislation aims to diminish educational and discipline disparities in Minnesota. The bill is built on previous legislation passed that limited suspension, expulsion, and exclusion for pre-K students. While the bill would not ban suspension or exclusion, it would mark them as a final option for educators. 

In 2022, a non-partisan article from the Minnesota House of Representatives staff was posted, citing data shared from Solutions Not Suspensions, a coalition aimed at decreasing Minnesota’s discipline disparities. The letter notes that Black students, Indigenous students, and students with disabilities suffer exclusion, suspension, and expulsion at significantly higher rates than white and non-disabled peers. For example, Black students in Kindergarten are 7 times more likely to be suspended than white peers. And kindergarteners with disabilities make up 30% of students suspended while only accounting for 13% of the student population

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PDFs of the Solutions Not Suspensions Coalition letter alongside several other letters was also provided to legislators and can be downloaded from the Minnesota State Legislature’s website. 

“To be clear, we will never close our student opportunity gap if our students do not have an equal opportunity to be in our classrooms. When we hear the statistics, from the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, and know that 55 percent of suspensions are based on subjective reasons, for things like general disrespect, versus objective reasons, such as assault or possessing a weapon. It shines a light for us to clearly see that the discretion and subjectivity that is built into the system, is leading to troubling statistics across our state,” said Richardon. 

Richardson was joined by several testifiers, including several from the Minneapolis Public Schools Community. Several testifiers from other areas of Minnesota also spoke up in public testimony. One such testifier was Bernadeia Johnson. Johnson is a member of Solutions Not Suspensions Coalition, a professor at Minnesota State University-Mankato, a former MPS Superintendent, and Board Chair of Minnesota Educational Equity Partnership. 

“Our state has such large discipline disparities, for students of color and for students with disabilities. This happens when teaching is not rigorous, expectations are not clear, consequences don’t match the behavior, and when consequences differ based on student demographic,” Johnson said. 

Johnson also discussed her work as a former MPS superintendent and an investigation she led into the district’s discipline disparities, noting that the district’s response to learning of the discipline disparities were to invest in mental health resources, tools to keep kids in class, and to remove subjective categories in discipline processes. 

Currently, Minneapolis Public Schools’ Behavior Standards mentions (briefly) an institutional aversion to suspension for young learners. The policy notes: 

“We recognize we must set clear and high expectations, define consistent responses and find alternatives to suspensions, especially in early grades. The Behavior Standards Policy ensures fair rules for everyone and creates consistency across the MPS system for how students are disciplined at school. The policy  outlines expectations for students and adults, alike.”

Many of the testifiers spoke up against a punitive framework for young learners and a few also spoke up concerned that losing suspension as a tool would negatively impact school safety. 

“I need that tool [suspension] in my toolbox to make this work,” said Nancy Antoine, Principal at Bridgewater Elementary in Northfield. 

Several committee members from the GOP spoke up against the bill. The primary concern was in doing away with a tool that some school districts may choose to use. 

“We heard some horrific stories today. That’s poor management, that’s poor discipline. Doing a blanket mandate is not the way to address this issue,” said Rep. Ben Bakeberg (GOP - District 54B), a teacher/educator. “When we’re working with families to discipline students, it’s not to be punitive. There is a partnership with the family, that the family comes to the table and we collaboratively work together.”

Ultimately the bill passed out of the House Education Policy committee. It will next be heard in House Education Finance, as it does include a financial appropriation. Additionally, there is a Senate companion, Senate File 69, which has not been heard yet and will be first heard in Senate Education Finance.