Children from poor families are more often exposed to chronic stress and traumatic experiences. Last school year, about 4,000 D.C. public school students were homeless, the report says. At the end of 2014, more than 1,000 children in the city were growing up in foster care. And with one out of every 50 adults incarcerated, many children have a parent in prison.

According to the report, children can be affected by a single event or ongoing trauma. It harms executive functioning and their ability to regulate emotions, and it shapes how their brains develop. Children who have been traumatized often feel unsafe and can't concentrate; they may be withdrawn or have a strong emotional reaction to something seemingly harmless. Read article.

New Report Highlights How Alternative Discipline Policies Replace Zero Tolerance to Break School-To-Prison Pipeline

A new report from Advocacy & Communication Solutions, LLC (ACS), Better Than Zero: How alternative discipline is replacing zero tolerance to break the school-to-prison pipeline, highlights a sample of state and local actions to end the school-to-prison pipeline, including an in-depth look at potential changes to zero-tolerance policies in Ohio, and provides a closer look at how research is proving the flaws in zero-tolerance policies. The report is a valuable resource for communities across the country that want to better understand the school-to-prison pipeline and how current policies can be changed to reduce or eliminate it.

"We looked at the effects of zero-tolerance policies, and the effects are negative and long lasting," said Lori McClung, president and co-founder of ACS. "We wanted to offer communities alternatives and provide resources to help states and local communities eliminate the school-to-prison pipeline."

The report also highlights several alternative discipline approaches that are gaining favor as replacements for zero-tolerance policies and showing promise as tools to end the school-to-prison pipeline for good, including restorative justice, targeted behavioral supports for at-risk students, character education and social-emotional learning programs, and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS).  More.