Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) has reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights following a compliance review that identified “persistent racial disparities” in how the district disciplines students.
The review, which analyzed data dating back to 2013, highlighted that “similarly situated” Black and white students experienced unequal treatment within JCPS’s disciplinary framework. Specifically, Black students were more likely than their white counterparts to face out-of-school suspensions for their first offense. In contrast, white students were more often permitted to apologize and engage with district staff, while Black students frequently faced “exclusionary discipline.”
