Advancement Project Rejects Dept. Of Ed’s Letter on School Discipline Policies
August 20, 2026
Washington, DC – In response to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR)’s Dear Colleague Letter related to school discipline policies and disparate impact discrimination, issued on August 18, Adaku Onyeka-Crawford, Director of the Opportunity to Learn program at Advancement Project issued this statement:
“It’s no surprise that less than a year after hundreds of young people organized mass school walkouts to protest immigration enforcement and the many abuses of the Trump-Vance administration, that the U.S. Department of Education releases guidance encouraging schools to return to zero-tolerance policies and exclusionary discipline that would suppress student speech and dissent and exclude Black and other historically marginalized students from school.
The research is clear. When implemented well, discipline alternatives such as restorative practices not only keep more Black and disabled students in the classroom, but also improve school climate generally. Schools that have implemented restorative practices with fidelity report decreases in fighting and bullying, improved relationships between students and teachers, and feelings of connectedness to school. In contrast, zero-tolerance policies do not make schools more orderly or safe and can have long-term negative effects on academic performance.
Schools should be doing all they can to make sure students are not pushed out by harsh or unfair discipline policies—regardless of whether those policies were created with intentional or unintentional racial aims in mind. But this guidance indicates that OCR will at best, ignore discriminatory discipline, or at worst, threaten schools that strive to ensure that students of color are not disproportionately deprived of educational opportunities by unfair or harsh discipline.
In addition to being cruel, the guidance is poorly argued—relying on unsupported assertions, cherry-picked and out-of-context quotes, and misrepresentations of legal precedent. Perhaps that’s the reason why the first footnote acknowledges that the guidance lacks the force and effect of law, creates no new legal standards, and does not bind the public.
Nonetheless, as OCR under the Trump-Vance administration continues to shirk its duty to enforce federal civil rights law, it is up to us as educators, parents, students, and other advocates to work together to enforce these protections under state and local laws. Together we must continue to fight for an inclusive system of education where all students are valued regardless of race.”
###
Advancement Project is a next-generation, multi-racial civil rights organization. Rooted in the great human rights struggles for equality and justice, we exist to fulfill America’s promise of a caring, inclusive and just democracy. We use innovative tools and strategies to strengthen social movements and achieve high impact policy change. Visit www.advancementproject.org to learn more.
We are a co-convener of the National Campaign for Police Free schools, a formation of 20+ youth-led grassroots organizations fighting to end the criminalization of youth in the classroom, create liberatory educational spaces, and implement an affirmative vision of safety and transformative justice.
