Creating safe and supportive environments where students engage in prosocial behaviors is a priority and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) are used to achieve these goals. This study investigated relationships between PBIS fidelity, school climate, and office discipline referrals (ODRs). Participants were 204,701 students in…

Teachers' sense-making of student behavior determines whether students get in trouble and are formally disciplined. Status categories, such as race, can influence perceptions of student culpability, but the degree to which teachers' initial identification of student misbehavior exacerbates racial disproportionality in discipline receipt is…

Teachers' sensemaking of student behavior determines whether students get in trouble and are formally disciplined. Status categories, such as race, can influence perceptions of student culpability, but the degree to which teachers' initial identification of student misbehavior exacerbates racial disproportionality in discipline receipt is unknown.…

Within US public schools, Black girls are increasingly overrepresented in exclusionary discipline. Typically, this disproportionality has been examined through the analysis of district wide discipline records including, but not limited to, office referrals. Few studies have endeavored to interrogate the structure and creation of office referrals…

The urban classroom environment presents unique challenges related to student behavior and classroom management. This dissertation investigates the effectiveness of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) as a proactive approach to addressing these challenges. The study examines the impact of PBIS implementation in urban schools,…

A critical component of any school-based prevention program is early identification of student risk as reported by Lane et al. (Remedial and Special Education 32:39-54, 2011). While screening for academic risk has grown in the last decade, screening for behavioral risk has remained stagnant. Few schools systematically screen for behavioral and…

Schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports (SWPBIS) is currently implemented in more than 23,000 schools nationally and internationally. Several reviews have examined the SWPBIS evidence base, including a meta-analysis of single-case design research. However, to date, there has not been a review of group-based experimental research…

School climate plays an essential part of student development, with discipline playing a central role in the perception of school climate. When looking at the role educators play in supporting school climate, it is important to examine not only the role of academics, but also to see how support services are employed when looking at other…

Despite its increasing recognition and use in U.S. schools, a limited amount of research has evaluated the effect of restorative justice (RJ) for school violence prevention and response. To date, there is no standardized method for RJ implementation. Therefore, this systematic literature review investigates peer-reviewed studies on the application…

The effectiveness of the Check and Connect dropout prevention program was examined, over the course of 2.5 years, with 54 middle school students from diverse backgrounds experiencing one or more conditions of risk for dropout. Participants were randomly assigned to receive the Check and Connect intervention or business as usual (i.e., control) in…

Educational reform is at the forefront of legislatures and school districts across the United States (Hattie, 2011). To find and employ high school improvement initiatives that lead to improved educational experiences for students, educational leaders must examine in great detail what systems have been successful and then modify the initiatives to…

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is an evidence-based practice that has been shown to prevent and remediate challenging student behaviors, while concurrently improving academic outcomes. While the implementation of PBIS is a schoolwide process which involves multiple intensive trainings for all instructional and support staff,…

Positive Behavior Intervention Support (PBIS) has been used in many schools as an effective behavior management system to improve the behavior of students in classrooms, which impacts their academic performance. This quantitative, retrospective, one-group pretest posttest study was to determine the impact of PBIS on students' academic and behavior…

To improve our understanding of where to target interventions, the study examined the extent to which school discipline disproportionality between African American and White students was attributable to racial disparities in teachers' discretionary versus nondiscretionary decisions. The sample consisted of office discipline referral (ODR) records…

Racial disparities in teacher-issued office discipline referrals are less discussed than the well-documented suspension gaps. Discipline referrals, like suspension, can lead to lost instructional time. Although individuals are sent out of the classroom for a range of reasons, Black students, as a group, are at greater risk of being sent out than…