Exclusionary Discipline Highest in New Hampshire’s Urban Schools Suspension and Expulsion Found to Disproportionately Affect Disadvantaged Students

This research brief follows up on a joint Carsey/NH Kids Count publication from 2009. The 2009 study focused on larger disciplinary trends in New Hampshire schools and contextualized them in the policies, laws, and procedures that may have resulted in increased use of exclusionary discipline. The present study reports on rates of exclusionary discipline from 2010 through 2014 by school and student characteristics to better understand how and to what extent exclusionary discipline has been applied across the state in recent years. Authors Douglas Gagnon, Eleanor Jaffee, and Reeve Kennedy report that although rates of out-of-school suspension among secondary school students in New Hampshire are nearly as high as national trends, rates of expulsion are far below the national average. In urban secondary schools, the rate of in-school suspension is twice that of non-urban schools, while out-of-school suspension rates are three times higher. Male students, students of color, students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, students with disabilities, and homeless students are more likely to experience exclusionary school discipline, although racial disparities appear to stem largely from the greater racial diversity at the urban schools that use this type of discipline at higher rates with all students. Statewide, 3.5 percent of New Hampshire’s middle and high school students are suspended out of school for a total of five days or more and/or expelled in a given year. Given the notably higher rates of use of exclusionary discipline in New Hampshire’s urban school districts, the authors recommend that school policies and environments be assessed for opportunities to reverse these trends and provide more students with consistent classroom time and instruction

Four Species New to the Iowa Herpetofauna With Notes on Their Natural Histories

In a survey of the amphibians and reptiles of Iowa a number of species have been collected for which there are apparently no state records. . The localities here reported constitute extensions of the known geographic ranges of these species. None has a statewide distribution, but each of the three amphibians occupies a considerable area. The available data are believed adequate to permit relatively accurate delimitation of the ranges in Iowa. Original information on the life histories of these species is included

Spores of the Genus Selaginella in the United States

Micro- and megaspores of the genus Selaginella were studied. These were found to carry diagnostic characters which can be used as an aid in determining the taxonomic relationships and identification of the species. Fossil Selaginella spores from Pleistocene deposits have been identified