News
Climate
Equity
Jun 9, 2020

PBISApps Stands with the Black Community

​At PBISApps, we stand with students, educators, community members, and families calling for an end to police violence and systemic racism.

At PBISApps, we stand with students, educators, community members, and families calling for an end to police violence and systemic racism. The recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery are only the latest examples of violence sustained by racist structures, policies, and laws created over the last 400 years. Our educational system is not immune.

  • Black students are significantly more likely to be sent to the office for subjective behaviors, such as defiance or disrespect, than White students.[1]
  • Black students are 4.3 times more likely to be suspended than White students.
  • Black students with disabilities lost an average of 77 more days of instruction per year than their White peers due to disciplinary actions.

It isn’t enough to collect and share these data. We must be compelled to change because of them.

We acknowledge the voices of Black people who have long spoken out about the heinous violence and racism they experience every day, on the street, in the doctor’s office, and in schools. If we are truly part of a network of people committed to helping students achieve their dreams, we have a responsibility to sustain the movement past the day the last protest ends.

We are called to action.

Today, we recommit ourselves to listening to the voices of students, families, educators, and community members who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. We will amplify their research, experiences, and actions in educational spaces and share them with all of you. In the coming weeks, we will release a new version of the SWIS Equity Report that makes the data more accessible and helps teams take swift action based on the data they see. These will complement the equity resources currently on our website.

We can no longer remain silent if we truly want to make schools more effective, equitable places. We will show by our words and actions that Black lives matter.

PBISApps Equity Resources

1. Girvan, E. J., Gion, C., McIntosh, K., & Smolkowski, K. (2017). The relative contribution of subjective office referrals to racial disproportionality in school discipline. School Psychology Quarterly, 32(3), 392–404. https://doi.org/10.1037/spq0000178

About