It’s way too easy to judge a book by its cover and is exactly what’s happening to our children in West Virginia.
Data from the West Virginia Department of Education shows that poor white children and black students are disproportionately expelled in West Virginia public schools when compared to the numbers of more affluent students.
We believe that it’s time the West Virginia Legislature take a serious look at these numbers and come up with a workable solution that will change the tide for these students.
Having an equal chance to take part in society and have a shot at the American Dream should not be governed by a person’s upbringing or economic class into which they were born. Those are both realities that children have no control over.
While we do not condone the behaviors that bring these disciplinary actions on the students, we believe there is a better way to enact behavioral change other than simply putting a kid on the street. And that is exactly what expulsion does – kids end up on the streets and are then left to their own devices.
