Sent out or sent home: understanding racial disparities across suspension types from critical race theory and quantcrit perspectives

Although in-school suspensions may be viewed as less severe than out-of-school suspensions, both discipline consequences limit students’ access to learning opportunities and are negatively associated with a range of educational outcomes. Moreover, if sending students out of class perpetuates the same racial disparities as sending them home, this practice does not realize the equity goals of discipline reforms over the last decade. Our study draws on Critical Race Theory and QuantCrit to understand racial discipline gaps across in-school and out-of-school suspensions using data from students and schools in one large district. Results of multilevel regression models indicate similar racial disparities in both suspension types, suggesting neither approach is equitable. These findings illustrate the limits of race-neutral policies in mitigating exclusionary discipline gaps. Addressing the thorny issues that contribute to racial disparities will likely require greater resources for high quality implementation of school-wide culture change initiatives that are explicitly anti-racist

NEPC Review: The Academic and Behavioral Consequences of Discipline Policy Reform: Evidence from Philadelphia (Fordham Institute, December 2017)

A report from the Fordham Institute investigated the impact of a reform in the School District of Philadelphia that eliminated suspensions for certain low-level misbehaviors. The report considered whether the policy change was associated with any of the following: (a) district-wide out-of-school suspension rates, (b) academic and behavioral outcomes for students (looking separately at students who had a record of prior suspensions and those with no prior suspensions), and (c) racial disparities in suspensions. While the report concluded that the reform was a failure, the actual results were mixed, with the positive trends for students who were earlier suspended being much stronger in magnitude than evidence of negative outcomes for students who were not. A strength of the report is the use of advanced statistical methods and a longitudinal dataset to answer the questions of interest. However, the report is plagued by logical fallacies, overly simplified interpretations of findings, and inflammatory language. Moreover, the report uses misleading causal (&ldquo;consequences&rdquo;) language in the title and to describe study results, even though the study design is limited by unmeasured confounding factors and inappropriate comparison groups. Thus, while the analyses upon which the report is based have some technical merits, the narrative seems more of an attempt to advance a political agenda opposed to the reform studied than to improve understanding of complex policy issues.</p

Colorado Disciplinary Practices, 2008-2010: Disciplinary Actions, Student Behaviors, Race, and Gender

The Colorado legislature has recently taken school discipline policies under review, pursuant to SB 11-133. To inform the discussion in Colorado as well as a national discussion about discipline, this report presents an analysis of the most complete set of Colorado discipline data. It adds to and reinforces existing studies, documenting some troubling patterns, and suggests important changes in policy and in future data gathering. Two key policy issues can be identified in this data. The first is whether racial disproportionality reflects a disproportionate number of students of color engaging in certain types of behaviors, or whether it reflects students of color being punished for behaviors that White students engage in without such serious consequences. The second issue involves out-of-school suspensions and the negative consequences, such as the higher dropout rates, correlated with this type of disciplinary action. The report offers a series of recommendations to remedy and reduce the frequent use of out-of-school suspensions, and in particular the frequent use of this type of disciplinary action for students of color

Spending by the Major Charter Management Organizations: Comparing Charter School and Local Public District Financial Resources

Policymakers have long pursued more cost-effective, scalable alternatives for delivering elementary and secondary education. The elusive goal is identifying how to reform educational systems so that children will consistently achieve more academically—at a lesser cost. A frequently heard reform claim of this sort is that charter schools deliver higher performance at a lower cost. While the test score side of this question has been addressed by a great number of studies (with generally mixed findings), the cost side of the question has received far less attention. This study evaluates the cost claim by comparing the per-pupil spending of charter schools operated by major charter management organizations (CMOs) in New York City, Texas and Ohio with district schools. In each context, we assemble three-year panel data sets including information on school level spending per pupil, school size, grade ranges and student populations served for both charter schools and district schools. For charter schools we use both government (and authorizer) reports of spending, and spending as reported on IRS non-profit financial filings (IRS 990). We compare the spending of charters to that of district schools of similar size, serving the same grade levels and similar student populations. Overall, charter spending variation is large as is the spending of traditional public schools. Comparative spending between the two sectors is mixed, with many high-profile charter network schools outspending similar district schools in New York City and Texas, but other charter network schools spending less than similar district schools, particularly in Ohio. We find that in New York City, KIPP, Achievement First and Uncommon Schools charter schools spend substantially more ($2,000 to$4,300 per pupil) than similar district schools. Given that the average spending per pupil was around $12,000 to$14,000 citywide, a nearly $4,000 difference in spending amounts to an increase of some 30%. In Ohio, charters across the board spend less than district schools in the same city. And in Texas, some charter chains such as KIPP spend substantially more per pupil than district schools in the same city and serving similar populations, around 30 to 50% more in some cities (and at the middle school level) based on state reported current expenditures, and 50 to 100% more based on IRS filings. Even in New York where we have the highest degree of confidence in the match between our IRS data and Annual Financial Report Data, we remain unconvinced that we are accounting fully for all charter school expenditures

It takes two to tango:High Rates of Injury and Concussion in Ball Carriers and Tacklers in High School Boys' Rugby

Objective: To examine injury and concussion rates, mechanisms, locations, and types of injury in Canadian high school male rugby.Design:Prospective cohort study.Setting:High school male rugby.Participants:A total of 429 high school players (2018: n = 225, 2019: n = 256) were recruited from 12 teams in 7 schools in Calgary, Canada.Interventions: None.Main Outcome Measures: Injury surveillance included baseline questionnaires, weekly exposure, and injury reports. Injuries included those requiring medical attention, resulted in time loss and/or inability to complete a session. Concussion was defined as per the fifth Consensus on Concussion in Sport, and all players with a suspected concussion were referred to a study sport medicine physician.Results: A total of 134 injuries were captured, leading to an injury incidence rate (IR) of 57.9/1000 hours [95% confidence intervals (CIs): 45.4-73.8]. Median time loss was 6 days (range: 0-90). Injuries to the head were the most common (40%), followed by shoulder (12%) and ankle (10%). The concussion IR was 22.0/1000 hours (95% CIs: 15.9-30.4), which was the most common injury type (38%), followed by sprain (20%) and strain (15%). Sixty-five percent of injuries occurred in the tackle (ball carrier 35%, tackler 30%) and 76% of concussions (ball carrier 41%, tackler 35%).Conclusions: The rate of injury and concussion in Canadian youth high school male rugby is high, with tackle-related injuries and concussions the most common. Given this, there is a critical need for implementation of prevention strategies, in particular targeting concussion and the tackle event (eg, neuromuscular, tackle training, and law changes).</p

It takes two to tango:High Rates of Injury and Concussion in Ball Carriers and Tacklers in High School Boys' Rugby

Objective: To examine injury and concussion rates, mechanisms, locations, and types of injury in Canadian high school male rugby.Design:Prospective cohort study.Setting:High school male rugby.Participants:A total of 429 high school players (2018: n = 225, 2019: n = 256) were recruited from 12 teams in 7 schools in Calgary, Canada.Interventions: None.Main Outcome Measures: Injury surveillance included baseline questionnaires, weekly exposure, and injury reports. Injuries included those requiring medical attention, resulted in time loss and/or inability to complete a session. Concussion was defined as per the fifth Consensus on Concussion in Sport, and all players with a suspected concussion were referred to a study sport medicine physician.Results: A total of 134 injuries were captured, leading to an injury incidence rate (IR) of 57.9/1000 hours [95% confidence intervals (CIs): 45.4-73.8]. Median time loss was 6 days (range: 0-90). Injuries to the head were the most common (40%), followed by shoulder (12%) and ankle (10%). The concussion IR was 22.0/1000 hours (95% CIs: 15.9-30.4), which was the most common injury type (38%), followed by sprain (20%) and strain (15%). Sixty-five percent of injuries occurred in the tackle (ball carrier 35%, tackler 30%) and 76% of concussions (ball carrier 41%, tackler 35%).Conclusions: The rate of injury and concussion in Canadian youth high school male rugby is high, with tackle-related injuries and concussions the most common. Given this, there is a critical need for implementation of prevention strategies, in particular targeting concussion and the tackle event (eg, neuromuscular, tackle training, and law changes).</p

Injuries and concussions in Female High School Rugby:Prevention is worth a try

Objectives: To describe injury and concussion rates and mechanisms in female high school rugby players.Design:Two-year prospective cohort study.Setting:High school rugby.Participants: Participants included 214 female High school rugby players (year 1) and 207 female High school players (year 2) from the Calgary Senior High School Athletics Association 2018 and 2019 rugby competition.Intervention: None.Main Outcome Measures: Match and training injury and concussion. Injury definition included any injury resulting in time loss, inability to complete a session, and/or requiring medical attention. Details of reported injuries were collected on injury report forms and validated by a certified athletic therapist on a validated online injury surveillance platform. Exposure hours for players were tracked using paper or virtual weekly exposure forms by team designates.Results: A match incidence rate (IR) = 93.7 injuries/1000 match hours (95% confidence intervals (CI): 78.6-11.7) and training IR = 5.3 injuries/1000 training hours (95% CI: 4.0-6.9) were estimated. The tackle accounted for 109 (70%) match and 37 (44%) training injuries. Tackling was the most frequent mechanism of injury (IR = 37.5 injuries/1000 match hours, 95% CI: 27.5-51.8 and 1.2 injuries/1000 training hours, 95% CI: 0.7-2.4). Sixty-two match concussions (IR = 37.5 concussions/1000 match hours, 95% CI: 26.8-52.3) and 16 training concussions (IR = 1.0 concussions/1000 training hours, 95% CI: 0.7-1.4) occurred. Of 78 reported concussions, 78% for match and 56% for training were physician diagnosed. Tackling was the most frequent mechanism of concussion in matches (IR = 18.1 concussions/1000 match hours, 95% CI:11.4-28.6).Conclusions: Injury and concussion rates in female high school rugby are high. The tackle accounted for the highest proportion of injuries. Prevention strategies (eg, tackle policy change, tackle-training programs, and neuromuscular training) should be explored to increase sport safety.</p

Differences in injury and concussion rates in a cohort of Canadian female and male youth Rugby Union:A step towards targeted prevention strategies

Objective: To examine differences in match and training musculoskeletal injury and concussion rates and describe mechanisms of concussion while considering previous playing experience in female and male Canadian high school Rugby Union ('rugby') players. Methods: A 2-year prospective cohort study was completed in a high school league (n=361 females, 421 player-seasons; n=429 males, 481 player-seasons) in Calgary, Canada over the 2018 and 2019 rugby playing seasons. Baseline testing was completed at the start of each season and injury surveillance and individual player participation through session attendance was documented to quantify individual-level player exposure hours. Injury incidence rates (IRs) and incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were calculated using Poisson regression, offset by player exposure hours and clustered by team. Results: Overall match IR for females was 62% higher than males (overall IRR=1.62, 95% CI: 1.20 to 2.18) and the overall training IR was twice as high for females (overall IRR=2.15, 95% CI: 1.40 to 3.32). The female match concussion IR was 70% higher than the males (concussion IRR=1.70, 95% CI: 1.08 to 2.69). Females had a 75% greater tackle-related IR compared with males (IRR=1.75, 95% CI: 1.20 to 2.56). Additionally, female tacklers had a twofold greater rate of injury compared with male tacklers (IRR=2.17, 95% CI: 1.14 to 4.14). Previous playing experience was not associated with tackle-related injury or concussion IRs. Conclusion: The rate of injury and concussion was significantly higher in females within this Canadian high school cohort. These results emphasise the need for development, implementation and evaluation of female-specific injury and concussion prevention strategies to reduce injury and concussion in female youth rugby.</p

The Iowa Homemaker vol.20, no.1

Recreation that Recreates, Editor, page 1 Dual Personalities, Catherine Raymond, page 2 Married Right Out of College, Mary Ellen Lynch Brown, page 3 Sally Bows to Summer’s Sun, Kathryn Cooley, page 4 Selling Yourself, Kathryn Monson, page 6 I Want a Cotton Dress, Marcia E. Turner, page 7 Playtime Pays Dividends, Jane Wiley, page 8 Behind Closed Doors, Margaret Kumlien, page 9 Sunshine Sports, Jeanette Woodward, page 10 Packing the Convention Bag, Shirley Ambrose, page 11 What’s New in Home Economics, page 12 Veishea Presents, Adelaide Richardson, page 14 Picnic Basket, Dorothy Jo Weber, page 16 Alums in the News, Bette Simpson, page 17 Make Room for Music, Nancy Mason, page 18 Behind Bright Jackets, Betty Bice, page 20 Journalistic Spindles, Dorothy Anne Roost, page 23 Biography of a Home Economist, Eleanor White, page 2

Recent Developments in the UNO MK 3 Process–A Low Cost, Environmentally Benign Precipitating Process for CO2 Capture

AbstractSubstantial progress in the development of the UNO MK 3 process and it's cost reduction capabilities has been made since previously reported [1]. In particular, the recent results of two pilot plant trials of the process continue to demonstrate and confirm the major features of the UNO MK 3 process:Low overall cost (up to 50% less than the best amines)Multi-impurity capture and production of valuable by-products (no degradation products)Low energy of regeneration (less than 2.5 GJ/T CO2)Low volatility and environmental impact (SOx and NOx converted to fertilizer products)A good fit with existing global potassium markets (no additional potassium required)These new results are groundbreaking in terms of advancing the process; with no major barriers evident for scaling up the process from the current pilot scale (TRL 5) to larger scale demonstration (TRL 6/7) over the next few years