On September 19, 2024, NPR reported that, according to a study conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Black girls face more discipline and more severe punishments in public schools than girls from other racial backgrounds. The report, shared exclusively with NPR, took nearly a year-and-a-half to complete.

The findings offer a first of its kind snapshot of the disciplinary disparities that Black girls face in public schools across the U.S. — often for similar behaviors.

Over the course of the 85-page report, the GAO found that in K-12 public schools, Black girls had the highest rates of so-called “exclusionary discipline,” such as suspensions and expulsions. According to the report, Black girls accounted for 45% of out-of-school suspensions, 37% of in-school suspensions and 43% of expulsions for actions like “defiance, disrespect, and disruption.” Nationally, Black girls received such exclusionary discipline at rates 3 to 5.2 times those of white girls. The study also found that when they had a disability, discipline rates for Black girls grew even larger.

The GAO report is the first to examine underlying infraction data among discipline disparities and identify what contributes to them. It found that school poverty levels, the percentage of girls facing disabilities, the number of new teachers and the presence of a school resource officer were among the factors tied to increased discipline for girls.

Source: NPR

To read more on the study from NPR, click here.