This poster details the challenges with an alternative school designed to support behaviorally challenged students. The poster outlines some flaws in the design of such efforts and how such schools amount to an academic death sentence for many of the students who end up there. Recommendations outline how the general concept for the intervention could be strengthened for a much better outcome for the students.

1. INSTITUTIONAL INTERVENTION
Alternative School + School-based mental health services:
Well intentioned intervention or resegregation or academic
death sentence?
PROBLEM EQUITY
STATEMENT IMPLICATIONS
Alternative school has 80% Policy
black male students who have _____________________________________________________ Demystify the role of
significantly inferior academic
interpersonal and institutional
experience.
DISPROPORTIONALITY OF PLACEMENT bias in disproportionate
Placement criteria is based on multiple suspensions, chronic suspension and placement of
Mental health interventions absences or significantly low grades black males in alternative
not enough to prevent Students usually referred because of behavior incident schools.
increase of suspensions for
students. _____________________________________________________
Reframe the issue by
FLAWED DESIGN examining the pathologies
 Students are placed at inherent in the institution of
Academic, behavioral, and SES varied greatly but the most
increased risk of suspension,
common demoniator was race American education, not black
expulsion and drop out.
Substandard facility male behavior.
Inexperienced leadership & staff
This is a race-based issue, Stigma of placement Practice
an equity issue, and a civil Discover important links
rights issue Lack of support and resources for overwhelming need
Cross purposes of education and mental health between caring relationships,
_______________________________________________________________________
_ culturally responsive classroom
management, and the
CRITICAL elimination of disproportionate
QUESTIONS suspension and placement by
How do district leaders and
mental health directors more
“It’s because bias.
accurately identify and
address the problem? I’m black!” Connect effective classroom
strategies with eliminating
Who’s problem is being disproportionate suspension and
addressing? placement by bias.
_____________________________________________________
What’s the motivator for
addressing the problem? ADDRESSING INSTITUTIONAL RACISM
Addressing institutional racism can be overwhelming and must be
What is the goal? precisely identified: Suspension & placement.
Interventions should aim at leveraging resources and opportunities
to simultaneously reduce the immediate impact on students and
begin longer term sustainable change
_______________________________________________
CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE INTERVENTION
Prioritize and invest heavily in the most marginalized
students.
Recruit and incentivize appropriate leadership & staff that
are best able to work with these students.
Imbed these interventions within the current institutions.
Deliberately overlap and align education and mental health.
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