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The purpose of this study was to examine whether school discipline sanctions issued to female students are attributed to their racial background and developmental status and if this relation differs by teacher's racial/ethnic background and discipline philosophy. Drawing from a sample of 515 practicing educators from the United States, the authors used an experimental design to examine if teacher's discipline decision-making differed by student's race, student's developmental status, and teacher's racial/ethnic background and discipline philosophy. Results suggest that teacher's racial/ethnic background and discipline philosophy were the most salient predictors of discipline severity. Implications for future research on school discipline and Black girls are discussed.

There is extensive evidence suggesting that school suspension is correlated with poor academic performance. However, many studies examining the association between school suspension and achievement focus on the effects of out-of-school suspension specifically. While in-school suspension is offered as a less harmful alternative consequence to out-of-school suspension, the effects of in-school suspension on academic achievement are largely unknown. This article examines the association between in-school suspensions and academic failure on standardized achievement tests. The study utilized secondary data from two cohorts of 380,826 ninth-grade students enrolled in Texas public schools to investigate how many in-school suspensions result in failure on a state standardized achievement test. Our results show that a single in-school suspension is predictive of significant risk for academic failure (greater than 25% chance of failure) on a state-wide standardized test controlling for a host of individual and school characteristics. We also find that this relationship between discipline and risk for standardized test failure is more pronounced for students of color. The implications for school psychologists in terms of curtailing the potential negative impact of in-school suspension on student achievement are discussed.

The field of school psychology is beginning to grapple with issues of racism, prejudice, racial bias, and antiracism in schools. Within the contemporary context, it is particularly important to identify science and further develop research that informs the roles and responsibilities of participating in, delivering, leading, and evaluating professional development in schools to advance practice in antiracism and mitigate bias and prejudice. Recent research reveals that the evidence base for prejudice reduction, antiracism, and racial bias educator professional learning and development is in its infancy. This article presents recommendations for advancing school psychology in the training and preparation of school psychologists to lead these efforts in their daily practice. It also includes suggestions for incremental research necessary to advance the development of measures and professional learning in prejudice reduction, antiracism, and racial bias training for educators. Impact Statement Promoting antiracism professional development in schools is an important role for school psychologists. With limited empirical investigation of such efforts in the schools, further emphasis among scholars and practitioners is warranted. Contemporary articles featured in School Psychology Review provide further guidance for the field of school psychology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African American and Hispanic students receive more punitive school discipline than White students even when students of color commit similar infractions as Whites. Similarly, students with a disability status are more likely to experience harsher discipline in schools compared to their counterparts without a disability label. This study examines whether these discrepancies are a result of a difference in the number of infractions students of different racial/ethnic groups and disability categories commit. Using secondary educational data from a state educational agency in the United States, we demonstrate that African American and Hispanic students and students with an emotional behavioral disorder status receive more severe sanctions than White students and students without a disability label at their first discipline encounter. This racial disparity in discipline severity continues through six sanctions and is eliminated at the 13th sanction. The disability disparity in discipline severity dissipates after 10 sanctions for students with emotional behavioral disorder and intellectual disability. Implications for school personnel and future directions are discussed.

Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are at a higher risk of experiencing bully victimization compared with peers with and without disabilities. Yet the association between ADHD subtypes and bully victimization is not well understood. The current study examines which set of behaviors related to ADHD subtypes is influential in determining whether students are victimized. Using a latent class growth analysis, students with ADHD in a nationally representative special education sample (n = 291) were grouped by victimization trajectory. Latent class analysis revealed three victimization profiles. Approximately one third of participants (35%) experienced moderately high victimization decreasing over time. A slightly larger group reported consistently low victimization (39%), and one fourth (25%) reported consistently high victimization. Behaviors representing inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity were examined as covariates in the model. Hyperactive/impulsive behaviors were predictive of latent class assignment, initial victimization, and the trajectory of victimization. Study limitations are discussed. Recommendations are made to inform the creation of interventions tailored for students who have ADHD.

Exclusionary school discipline has received national attention due to its association with juvenile justice contact. Research has demonstrated support for links between exclusionary discipline and negative outcomes such as school dropout and juvenile justice involvement. The purpose of this study was to examine the intersections of race, gender, and disability in explaining the risk for juvenile justice contact using a state database, representing a sample of adolescent students. Controlling for individual, school, and community characteristics that are associated with juvenile justice contact such as, race/ethnicity, previous years' discipline rate, student retention from previous year, primary disability, whether the campus is a Title I school, as well as student body size and diversity, results suggest that disproportionality is prevalent when examining juvenile justice contacts, but the relationship among race, gender, disability, and discipline is a complicated one. Implications for understanding juvenile justice contact outcomes and future research for advancing the field are discussed.

Each year many students are subject to exclusionary discipline, in fact, 60% of students in Texas are disciplined at-least once between grades 7 through 12. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of school discipline contact on students' risk for grade retention and school dropout using a statewide sample of nearly one million 7th grade students tracked through their 12th grade year. Results indicate that school discipline relates to a 24% increase in high school dropout. These additional dropouts are associated with an economic effect of between $750 million and $1.35 billion per year. Results also indicate that school discipline is associated with approximately 6,600 grade retentions per year in the state of Texas. The delayed workforce entry related to grade retention has an effect of over $100 million for the state, including $5.7 million in lost tax revenue. Given the higher discipline rate for minorities, these costs disproportionately affect them. Further, the additional year of instruction costs the state over $76 million dollars.

Background: About one third of youth in the United States are overweight or obese and African American youth are at an increased risk for pediatric overweight and obesity as well as their complications. Physical activity has been identified as one determinant of overweight and obesity, and school bullying has been found to be associated with decreased physical activity. Guided by the Transactional Stress and Coping Model, this study examines how school bullying might impact the physical activity of white and African American healthy weight and overweight youth. Methods: Existing, nationally representative, and complex survey data (N = 4509) from the 2005-2006 United States Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) were analyzed using multiple group structural equation modeling to evaluate study questions. Results: Support for the hypothesized model was found such that bullying negatively impacted physical activity by way of increasing internalizing symptoms. Possible evidence for parental support, but not peer support, as a protective factor was also found. Results were generally similar for all groups, though some differences are discussed. Conclusion: School bullying is a risk factor for reduced physical activity, regardless of race-ethnicity and weight. Implications for school health professionals are discussed.

School antibullying initiatives are increasingly focused on educating students about the impact of proactive bystanders to reduce victimization. However, according to the social-ecological perspective, children can also choose to adopt bystander responses based on what their parents teach them at home. School counselors are equipped to disseminate best practices of bullying prevention to parents and increase school and home communication on effective bystander responses, but how much this influences what parents teach their children as bystanders is not clear. The current study examined whether parental perceptions of school climate and awareness of antibullying interventions affected what parents teach their children to do as bystanders to school bullying. Results indicated a significant and positive relationship between parent and school counselor agreement on the presence of antibullying interventions and parents teaching their children to stand up for the victim if they witness bullying at school. We discuss strategies to promote home and school collaboration on antibullying initiatives, extending the role of school counselors in antibullying efforts, and future directions.

Bias-based bullying focused on sexual orientation or gender identity in schools has significant negative implications for the academic, social, and emotional well-being of students who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual, or who are perceived to behave in gender nonconforming ways. Despite empirical support for the influence of bystander behavior can have on school bullying, information about bystander behavior during bias-based bullying remains limited. Using a thematic narrative analysis, this study analyzed high school students' perceptions of bystander behavior in their school. Results suggest bystanders are observed to enact a range of responses that fall into three categories: (a) passive avoidance, (b) victim support, or (c) joining the bullying situation. Furthermore, the motivation of bystanders was described within the themes of (a) fear, (b) individual characteristics, (c) relationships, and (d) personal experience. By drawing from the daily lived experiences of adolescents, the current study offers greater insight into youth perspective on how future strategies could address bias-based bullying in schools. This study is foundational to increase the ecological validity of efforts to quantify bias-based bullying.

African American female students' elevated suspension risk has received national attention. Despite a number of studies documenting racial/ethnic disparities in African American females' school suspension risk, few investigations have attempted to explain why these disparities occur. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of colorism in explaining suspension risk using a nationally representative sample of adolescent females. Controlling for individual- and school-level characteristics associated with school discipline such as student-teacher relationships, prior discipline history, school size and type, the results indicate that colorism was a significant predictor of school suspension risk. African American female adolescents with darker complexions were almost twice as likely to receive an out-of-school suspension as their White female peers. This finding was not found for African American female students with lighter skin complexions. Implications for adopting a colorist framework for understanding school discipline outcomes and future research for advancing the field in this area are discussed.

Nearly 15% of students are disciplined in a given year, with 60% of students being disciplined at-least once between grades 7 through 12. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of school discipline contact on students’ risk for grade retention and school dropout using a statewide sample of 7th grade students tracked through their 12th grade year. Results indicate that school discipline is associated with approximately 4,700 grade retentions per year in the state of Texas. The delayed workforce entry related to grade retention has an effect of over $68 million for the state, including $5.6 million in lost tax revenue. Given the higher discipline rate for minorities, these costs disproportionately affect them. Further, the additional year of instruction costs the state nearly $41 million dollars. For each year an individual student is retained the effect on the net social surplus exceeds $23,000. Results also indicate that school discipline relates to a 29% increase in high school dropout. These additional dropouts account for an economic effect of $711 million per year. It is recommended that educational agencies adopt evidenced-based programs that reduce school officials’ use of punitive and exclusionary measures to manage student behavior such as Positive Behavioral Intervention Supports. Further, these results underscore the need for school officials to employ secondary and tertiary dropout prevention programs that are targeted at the most academically and behaviorally at-risk students in schools in addition to primary prevention programs.

The literature on bullying among students with disabilities is burgeoning. The purpose of this study was to examine risk factors for adolescents' involvement in bullying across the bullying continuum. Drawing from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2), 2,870 adolescents with disabilities were sampled. Results from multinomial regression analyses indicated that internalizing symptoms and interpersonal skills were significant predictors of victimization and bully-victimization risk, respectively. Disability status emerged as a significant predictor only for bullying behavior. Ethnic differences were found for victimization roles, but not for bullying, suggesting that Caucasian students were most vulnerable to being the target of bullying or serving dual roles as bully-victims relative to students from other ethnic backgrounds. Implications for these findings are discussed.

The recruitment of culturally and linguistically diverse students to graduate programs is critical to the overall growth and development of school psychology as a field. Program websites serve as an effective recruitment tool for attracting prospective students, yet there is limited research on how school psychology programs use their websites to recruit diverse students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether school psychology program websites include sufficient levels of diversity-related content critical for attracting diverse applicants. The website content of 250 professional psychology programs (165 school psychology training programs and 85 clinical and counseling psychology programs) were examined for the presence of themes of diversity and multiculturalism that prospective racially/ethnically and linguistically diverse students deem important for selecting a graduate program. Results indicated that school psychology programs had less diversity-related content on their program's website relative to clinical and counseling psychology programs. Implications for improving recruitment of racially/ethnically and linguistically diverse students through websites are discussed.

Why is there a need to increase the racial/ethnic diversity of faculty in school psychology? Chiefly, school psychologists serve the most racially/ethnically diverse population: children in US schools. Therefore, developing a knowledge base that is inclusive of this wide range of perspective as well as growing a workforce that is reflective of this diversity is essential to effective service delivery. To achieve this goal, school psychology trainers must develop evidence-based, purposeful efforts to recruit and retain racial/ethnic minority students in doctoral programs. For these reasons, we called for a special issue on diversifying the field of school psychology. The purpose of this special issue is to advance the evidence-base in school psychology on how to increase diverse scholars and leaders in the profession. Moreover, the goal is to also evaluate the status of the profession in effectively recruiting and retaining racial/ethnic minority graduate students, mentoring racial/ethnic minority students to pursue careers in academia, and promoting faculty development and retention of racially and ethnically diverse faculty. Thus, the articles in this special issue will address critical areas where trainers can improve recruitment and retention strategies that will increase the racial/ethnic diversity of school psychology faculty, leaders, and practitioners.

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate how school psychologists can proactively address disparities in school suspension through the examination of office discipline referrals (ODR). Results of two studies examining high school ODRs suggest that there is value in school psychologists disaggregating and analyzing ODRs at the school level and at the teacher and student level. Findings indicate that sampled teachers issued ODRs predominantly for missed classes and defiance. High referring teachers issued more ODRs earlier on in the school year than their colleagues and at greater rates for Black and Hispanic students than White students. Implications for school psychologists' promotion and engagement in culturally responsive service delivery are discussed.

The achievement gap between Latino and White youth is well documented. This is of particular concern as children enter middle school because of the decline in school engagement and achievement noted in many students. The impact parent and peer beliefs and behaviors have on academic achievement, engagement, and achievement values of Latino middle school youth have received less attention than in White youth. The current study explored how these parent and peer beliefs and behaviors influenced Latino adolescents' achievement values, school behavioral engagement, and school achievement. Results indicated that the beliefs and behaviors of parents and peers significantly predicted two sets of achievement values (Subjective Task Values & Economic Benefits to Education). However, student achievement was only related to subjective task values and behavioral engagement. In addition, subjective task values mediated the relation between parent and peer beliefs and behaviors and student achievement. Implications for future research and intervention are discussed.

The achievement gap between African American and European American youth is a pervasive problem in the United States. This study explored how achievement values and behavioral engagement affect the academic attainment of an academically at-risk sample of 167 African American youth in late elementary school. Results indicate that achievement values do not have a significant influence on engagement or achievement in late elementary school. However, behavioral engagement significantly influenced math achievement from Grades 4 to 5. The implications of these findings are discussed.

This study examined the prevalence rates of bully victimization and risk for repeated victimization among students with disabilities using the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study and the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 longitudinal datasets. Results revealed that a prevalence rate ranging from 24.5% in elementary school to 34.1% in middle school. This is one to one and a half times the national average for students without disabilities. The rate of bully victimization was highest for students with emotional disturbance across school levels. Findings from this study also indicated that students with disabilities who were bullied once were at high risk of being bullied repeatedly. Elementary and middle school students with autism and high school students with orthopedic impairments were at the greatest risk of experiencing repeated victimization. Implications of the findings are discussed. (Contains 2 tables.)

The authors examined whether the adjustment patterns of socially and overtly aggressive preadolescent girls, ages 9 to 11 years, from rural communities differed by ethnicity. Students were administered a series of questionnaires to assess the degree to which girls engaged in various forms of aggression and to assess aggressive girls' social, psychological, and academic functioning. Four clusters of girls--nonaggressive, socially aggressive, and moderate and high mixed aggressive--were identified with cluster analysis based on cross-gendered peer nominations of social and overt aggression. Results indicated that ethnic variation exists in aggressive and nonaggressive girls' attitudes toward school and satisfaction with their friendships, but no ethnic differences were found in aggressive girls' social adjustment. Socially aggressive and nonaggressive African American girls endorsed greater feelings of disengagement from school than socially aggressive and nonaggressive European American girls. No ethnic differences were found in aggressive girls' endorsement of internalizing symptoms. However, both nonaggressive and socially aggressive African American girls reported greater dissatisfaction with their interpersonal relationships than nonaggressive and socially aggressive European American girls. (Contains 3 tables.)

A sample of 560 school psychologists and school counselors completed a Web-based survey regarding bullying in their schools, related training, and interventions used. Few school-based mental health professionals used evidence-based bullying interventions or were involved in the selection of interventions for their school, and administrators were often cited being in charge of selecting the antibullying program(s) to be used by a school or district. Although most respondents reported receiving some training in bullying assessment or intervention, most of this training occurred during in-service training or at professional conferences, suggesting that it may have been limited in intensity and duration. Specific implications are discussed, including the need to adequately assess and provide antibullying training for school administrators and provide training in evidence-based bullying interventions. (Contains 3 tables.)

This study examined the construct validity of nonverbal social aggression and the relation of nonverbal social aggression to dimensions of children's social status. Peer nominations of verbal social, nonverbal social, direct veral, and physical aggression, as well as social dominance, perceived popularity, and social acceptance, were collected from 459 elementary students. Structural equation modeling with physical and direct verbal aggression items and verbal and nonverbal social aggression items yielded three factors of aggression: overt, nonverbal social, and verbal social. Subsequent analyses indicated that girls are more nonverbally socially aggressive than boys. Nonverbal social aggression was found to explain unique variance in social acceptance for boys and to offer equal contributions to girls' social dominance and perceived popularity, controlling for overt and verbal social aggression. Suggestions for future research are discussed. (Contains 1 figure, 3 tables and 1 footnote.)

The purpose of the current study was to examine the dimensionality of social victimization and to assess the relation between social victimization and classmate social support in a sample of 260 students. Confirmatory factor analyses yielded four dimensions of peer victimization: overt, verbal social, and nonverbal social victimization and peer exclusion, providing preliminary evidence that social victimization is multidimensional. Boys reported experiencing greater levels of overt victimization than girls and girls were more likely to endorse experiencing peer exclusion. No gender differences were found with respect to children's experience of verbal and nonverbal forms of social victimization. Results suggest that middle school students were more likely to be the target of verbal social victimization than were elementary school students. Verbal social and nonverbal social victimization as well as peer exclusion demonstrated criterion-related validity. Implications for assessment and intervention for social victimization and suggestions for future research are discussed. (Contains 5 tables, 1 figure, and 2 footnotes.)

There is a large body of research examining the discipline experiences of Black males (Lewis et al. in "Souls: A Critical Journey of Black Politics, Culture, and Society," 2009; Skiba et al. in "The Urban Review," 34, 317-348, 2002); however, less is known about the types of behavioral infractions Black female students exhibit and the discipline sanctions imposed for Black girls for such infractions. As a result, the purpose of this study is to examine the type of discipline infractions exhibited by Black female students enrolled in an urban school district and to explore whether the pattern of discipline infractions and sanctions imposed for Black girls disproportionately differs from all female students, but more specifically White and Hispanic females. Results suggest that Black girls are overrepresented in exclusionary discipline practices and Black girls reason for discipline referrals differs significantly from White and Hispanic girls. Based on these findings, recommendations are provided for urban educational stakeholders.

Majority-race (black or white) elementary school children with and without a minority friend (black or white) in their classroom were compared on measures of social, behavioral, and affective characteristics. Analyses focused on 260 4th through 6th grade students who were racial majorities in their classrooms and had at least one reciprocated friendship in the classroom-based peer group. Overall, the results were consistent with the scenario that majority children with minority friends are high status, prosocial, and socially satisfied members of the peer group, compared to majority children without a cross-race friendship, although race and gender differences were observed. In contrast, class-level characteristics (e.g. class size, the proportion of participating children in each classroom of the majority race, and the number of minority-race children in the classroom) were not predictive of whether a majority child had a cross-race friendship or not. Implications for the current status of black-white relations among our youth were discussed.