Students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender aren’t included in efforts to address the overuse of suspension and expulsion in schools.
That’s according to a new study out today… which says schools suspend LGBT students more often than their heterosexual peers.
Federal law requires schools to collect data on suspension and expulsion for students based on race and disability … but not based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Indiana University Equity Project director Russ Skiba says data collection gives schools the opportunity to see problems … and fix them.
“Because there are no data collected at the individual level on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, we don’t have the same opportunity," Skiba says.
During the 2012-13 school year, the most recent year for which data for all students is available, almost one in 10 Indiana students were suspended or expelled.
