I spoke with Bettianne Hart, board chairperson, Interfaith Children's Movement (ICM) on the Saturday, January 30 edition The Local Take. Tune in to hear the conversation beginning at 7:00 AM. We talked about the upcoming ICM day of action at the Capitol on Wednesday, February 3. We also discussed a few of the Bills that they were hoping to see passed into law this legislative session. After that conversation, we reached out to Representative Henry "Wayne" Howard to speak with us about House Bill 135 Too Young to Suspend Act.
Rep. Howard explains that the Bill is in support of the Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS) Initiative. This initiative was adopted by the Georgia Department of Education. The goal of the PBIS framework is to teach students expected behavior, positively reinforce good behavior and, to use collected data to assess and manage the school's approach to student discipline. This is a long way of saying that teachers will have another option for discipline where the only option is suspension, currently.
Suspension at this grade level is the beginning of the school to prison pipeline. Rep. Howard explains that when a student is suspended in Pre-K that student is more likely to be suspended again. He also alludes to the fact that children who are suspended at this level are more likely to end up in prison.
PBIS allows our educators another option and provides a holistic framework to correct children without contributing to their downfall. If you are interested in helping to get this Bill passed please join the Interfaith Children's Movement on February 3 at 9:30 AM at Trinity United Methodist Church, 265 Washington Street, SW in downtown Atlanta.
Click here to reach Representative Henry "Wayne" Howard
Click here to register and help us to support the passage of HB 135 in the Georgia Legislature and end the school to prison pipeline in the State of Georgia.
For more information about ICM, click the following link: Interfaith Children's Movement