[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 26 (Thursday, March 9, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E276-E277]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION FOR SAFE SCHOOLS AND SAFE COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2000

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DALE E. KILDEE

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 9, 2000

  Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing the Alternative 
Education for Safe Schools and Safe Communities Act of 2000.

[[Page E277]]

This legislation will assist States and school districts in their 
efforts to fund alternative education programs and services for 
students who have been suspended or expelled from school and reduce the 
number of suspensions and expulsions. This legislation will provide our 
schools with an important tool in their efforts to ensure safer schools 
and safer communities while providing vital educational opportunity.
  Presently, numerous students are suspended or expelled from school 
annually. Regardless of the reason these students received a suspension 
or expulsion--disruptive behavior, verbal abuse, a violent act--they 
are often left to fend for themselves without any educational services, 
or worse yet no supervision or guidance. The loss of educational 
services for these students is a destructive force to their chances to 
advance academically, be promoted from grade to grade, or to resist the 
temptation to dropout of school. In addition, students not in school 
and without any supervision can bring the problems which necessitated 
their suspension or expulsion to the community--increasing juvenile 
delinquency and possibly other violence and crime.
  Under the Gun-Free Schools Act, schools are required to expel a 
student for one-year if they bring a firearm to school. In school year 
1997-1998, that amounted to 3,507 expulsions. Unfortunately, fewer than 
half of these students were referred for alternative education 
placements. In fact, students expelled for firearm violations often do 
not receive educational services through alternative programs or 
schools. This lack of continuing education and supervision may put the 
community at risk of gun violence from these children.
  While there are times when students may need to be removed from their 
school due to behavior, whether violent or non-violent, little is 
accomplished by risking their academic future through a lack of 
educational services. This legislation will promote alternative 
placements for suspended or expelled students so the problems they 
brought to school do not become problems of the community. The 
legislation would also require school districts to reduce the numbers 
of suspensions of expulsions of students. I would like to make it clear 
that this program's funding should not make it easier to remove 
students from the classroom in greater numbers, but rather should 
enhance the ability of school districts to provide continuing 
educational services for the students they do remove from the 
classroom.
  Specifically, the Alternative Education for Safe Schools and Safe 
Communities Act of 2000 would authorize $200 million to assist school 
districts in reducing the number of suspensions and expulsions and 
establishing or improving programs of alternative education for 
students who have been suspended or expelled from school. Additional 
specifics of the program include:
  States would receive allocations based on the amount of Title I, Part 
A dollars they receive. States would then distribute 95 percent of this 
funding to local school districts.
  School districts would use funding to both reduce the number of 
suspensions and expulsions and establish or develop alternative 
education programs.
  Students participating in alternative education programs would be 
taught to challenging State academic standards.
  Students would be provided with necessary mental health, counseling 
services and other necessary supports.
  States and school districts would be required to coordinate efforts 
with other service providers including public mental health providers 
and juvenile justice agencies.
  School districts would have to plan for the return of students 
participating in alternative education programs to the regular 
educational setting, if it is appropriate, to meet the needs of the 
child and his or her prospective classmates.
  School districts would have to meet continually increasing 
performance goals to maintain funding. These performance goals include: 
reductions in the number of suspensions and expulsions, reduction in 
the number of incidents of violent and disruptive behavior, and others.
  The Department of Education would be required to identify or design 
model alternative education programs for use by school districts and 
then disseminate these examples of ``best practices.''
  The future of all our children is too critical to allow those who 
have been suspended or expelled from school to become the future 
burdens on our social welfare system, or to have the disruptive and 
unsafe acts they did in schools take place in the greater community. I 
urge Members to cosponsor this legislation.

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