NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL

VOLUME 26, NUMBER 3, 2009-2010

THE ROLE OF PRINCIPALS’ ETHNICITY

AND GENDER IN THE SUSPENSION OF
AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENTS

Patricia Hoffman-Miller
Prairie View A&M University
ABSTRACT

The overrepresentation of African American students in suspensions and expulsions is

not a new phenomenon. Frequent disciplinary practices in public schools result in
behavioral and cognitive problems as early as kindergarten. In the current era of
accountability and testing, school districts cannot afford to exclude significant groups of
children. Urban districts are the losers in this accountability paradigm, with repeated
out of school suspensions disproportionately affecting student achievement. There is
irrefutable congruence between student attendance and academic performance. Previous
researchers established a positive correlation between suspension rates and student
ethnicity. Research is vague as to the ethnicity and gender of principals responsible for
suspensions. This research sought to determine if there were relationships between the
ethnicity and gender of principals and student suspensions in a small urban school
district in Pennsylvania.

T he exclusion of African American students, through legal

means such as suspension and expulsion, presents an
interesting paradox as school districts across the country
attempt to meet the mandates of No Child Left Behind. This
legislation mandates accountability in instruction through standards-
based curricular reform, with clearly delineated expectations for all
student achievement. Student and student sub-groups attending
schools in urban and rural areas must master proficiency across all
curricular areas, irrespective of ethnicity, gender, language, or
handicapping condition. Although all District and State Boards of
Education must adhere to the requirements of this legislation, student
achievement in Title I Schools must meet Average Yearly progress
(AYP) or risk substantive sanctions from the State and Federal
governments.

62
63 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

Of particular concern to educational policy makers is the

perceived inability of African American and Hispanic students to
achieve parity on standardized tests. Closing the achievement gap is a
requirement of all school districts irrespective of boundaries or wealth.
No Child Left Behind Requires that districts report all data, with
student test scores disaggregated according to a set of predetermined
variables. Variables such as socio-economic status (SES), race and
gender, represent a portion of the assessment, and contribute to the
district’s report card. Nationally, a number of affluent suburban and
suburban-fringe school districts were unable to improve student
achievement, as reflected through State assessment measures.

For urban districts dependent upon the receipt of Title I funds,

the consequences of this inability is complete loss of local control,
State takeover of district operations, and/or re-structuring. Publicly
elected policy makers, facing increased criticism and scrutiny from the
public acquiesced to school administrators looking for a quick fix,
through the adoption of “research-based” programs that failed to offer
prescriptive solut8ions to the district’s problem. Many districts, in
desperation, substituted curricular solutions aimed at instantaneous
reform, despite the fact that these solutions were incapable of
addressing contextual inertia and dysfunction. The problem of inertia,
coupled with an inordinately high rate of suspensions among African-
American students, presents a complex set of problems for many
school districts. Unfortunately, as the number of African American
student suspensions increases in many districts, the goal of closing the
achievement gap and improving student achievement becomes less
and less attainable.

Inherent in the No Child Left Behind statute is the safe school

requirement, a product of zero-tolerance legislation enacted in
response to school violence. After the first school shooting in 1988,
the American public demanded safe school initiatives designed to
punish and remove offenders. Harsh disciplinary sanctions were the
results of this public outcry, as the Congress passed the Safe and Drug
Free Schools Act in 1994. The images of Columbine further solidified
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 64

the public and elected official’s perception of school based violence in

public education. These perceptions resulted in an over-reaction to
minor student misconduct with little if any differentiation between
violent and non-violent student actions by district administrators.
Student suspensions increased dramatically during this period.

The burden of suspensions rested primarily on African

American students. Research determined that African American
students consistently received more severe school discipline for less
serious behavior (MacFadden, 1992) with a strong correlation between
racial disparities in student discipline and perceived student
infractions.

African American students are continually subjected to

disproportionate out of school suspensions (Boyd, 2000; Casella,
2003; Costenbader & Markson, 1998; Gadlin & Morales, 1999;
Garibaldi, 1992; Garibaldi, Blanchard & Brooks, 1997; Hall, 2000;
Morrison & D’Incau, 1997; Richart, Brooks & Soler, 2003; Short,
1994; Skiba, Michale & Nardo, 2000; Skiba, Peterson & Williams,
1997; Townsend, 2000). Zero tolerance policies adopted by school
districts appear to have exacerbated minority overrepresentation in the
application of discipline. While these policies initially focused on
those egregious actions considered dangerous, recent application of
these policies by administrators demonstrates little congruence
between serious violent actions embodied in the initial legislation and
less serious offenses. Less serious offenses, such as defiance,
disrespect and chronic lateness, certainly do not constitute actions
warranting out of school suspension (Townsend, 2000). Many
publicized reports suggest that the majority of African American
students receive suspensions for actions that are subjective in nature.

In contrast, serialized school violence embodies the breadth

and intent of the original zero tolerance legislation. Serialized school
violence occurs primarily at rural, suburban and suburban-fringe
districts, committed by White adolescent males. One may differentiate
serialized school violence from school based violence in that it
65 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

involves serialized violent actions against an entire school population.

One or more students, armed with weapons and/or explosives,
generally commit these actions, with the intent of inflicting bodily
harm or injury upon all students, teachers and administrators.

Despite the fact that the actions representing serialized school

violence are committed by White males, the burden of suspensions
falls heavily on minority students. While the actions of White males
hastened the implementation of mandated zero-tolerance policies, the
effects of zero-tolerance cannot be generalized across racial lines,
particularly among White male adolescents.

For African American students, the impact of these policies is

politically and economically catastrophic. Increasing numbers of
children find themselves removed from school by exclusionary
policies heretofore reserved for the most egregious offenses. These
draconian measures have effectively denied millions of children the
opportunity to participate in a just and equitable education. The results
of our collective failure to deal with the impact of student exclusion
will become even more apparent as increased percentages of urban
schools fail to make Adequate Yearly Progress and graduation cohort
rates decline propitiously.

Administrators, Teachers and School Climate

Students do not fail simply because they are black or poor or

pregnant or from a single-parent home. They fail, in part,
because schools are not responsive to the conditions and
problems accompanying these personal and SES (sic)
conditions … (Wehlage, Rutter, Smith, Lesko & Fernandez,
1989).

A negative school climate may have a deleterious effect on

school behavior and engagement. When students feel alienated from
school, behavior and academic achievement declines substantially. the
sense of not belonging to the school contributes to alienation and a
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 66

lack of interest in school activities (Eckstrom, 1986). Research

discloses that when a significant difference exists between the
student’s culture and the school’s culture, teachers can easily misread
students’ aptitudes, intent and abilities as a result of the difference in
styles of language used and interactional patterns (Delpit, 1995).

This cultural disconnect often places minority students in

conflict with expected school norms, exacerbating alienation and
academic achievement. Poor attitudes about school appear to correlate
with low academic achievement as well as behavioral problems.
Eckstrom (1986) determined in a national study that, “not liking
school” was a primary reason for dropping out.

Numerous school factors contribute to student engagement and

success. The role of teachers and administrators, particularly where
discipline is concerned, should not be underestimated and warrants
further scrutiny. School disciplinary actions represent the most viable
set of practices, procedures and attitudes which, when they go
unchecked, can be devastating (Coppock, 1984). School officials and
teachers may knowingly or unknowingly provoke and exacerbate
student misbehavior through the interaction between adults and
children in the school (Dupper, 1996).

Teachers, through verbal or non-verbal communication, reject

the presence of certain children, based on either race and/or gender;
establish the foundation for student disaffection and disciplinary
problems. Inconsistencies in the application of disciplinary policies by
building administrators are powerful determinants of student behavior,
particularly at the secondary level.

Research in out of school suspensions determined that African

American and other minority students receive suspensions for trivial
offenses (Dupper, 1996) such as disruption of school, or defiance of
authority. These subjective labels reflect the true nature of
student/teacher/ administrator interaction, particularly where racial
prejudice or profiling exists.
67 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

The Center for Evaluation and Education Policy examined

suspensions and expulsions in Indiana (Rausch & Skiba, 2004).
Ninety-five percent of all out of school suspensions in Indiana were
the result of two categories: disruptive behavior and other. These two
categories also represented 70% of all expulsions. African American
students account for a suspension rate that is two and one half times
that of White students (Rausch & Skiba, 2004).

Rausch and Skiba’s research reflects sobering attitudes toward

out of school suspensions and expulsions by building principals.
Strong relationships were identified in this research between rates of
student suspension and expulsion and student achievement. Schools
with higher rates of out of school suspensions and expulsions had
lower than average passing rates on the Indiana State Test of
Educational Progress (ISTEP). Controlling for student socio-economic
status (SES), the percent of African American student enrollment,
school size, type and location, poor student achievement was
positively correlated with out of school suspensions (Rausch & Skiba,
2004).

Previous research demonstrated the existence of over-

representation of African American students in school suspensions.
Skiba, Peterson & Williams (1997) and Wu, Pink, Cram & Moles
(1982) found that SES was a powerful determinant in student
suspensions. In addition, membership in a minority group positively
correlated with the rate of student suspensions. Despite the mandated
and discretionary power bestowed upon building administrators, the
relationship between principal race and gender and student
suspensions remains largely unexplored. The purpose of this research
was to explore this relationship.
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 68

Methodology

Participants

This research involved an analysis of all disciplinary actions by

administrators resulting in out of school suspensions of students in a
small urban school district in Pennsylvania. The school district served
8,628 students, with 78.3% of the student population classified as
African American. The remainder of the student population consisted
of 8.1% White, 11% Hispanic, and 2.6% other. Table 1 reflects the
distribution of the student population by ethnicity.

Table 1— Distribution of Student Population by Race 1999-2000

Race N Percentage
African American 6757 78.3%
White 0703 08.1%
Hispanic 0945 11.0%
Other 0223 02.6%
Total 8628 100%

During 1999-2000, there were 4,498 cases of suspension in the

district. As a percent of total enrollment, suspensions accounted for
52.7% of the entire school population. Of the total student
suspensions, African American students represented the largest
number of students suspended, accounting for 3,858 cases of
suspension or 85.8%.

Those students suspended in the school district during the

1999-2000 school year were the sample and population for this
research. Therefore, all student suspensions in the district, irrespective
of grade level (K-12) became the population and sample. Data were
not disaggregated insofar as regular or special education students were
concerned. Each suspension constituted one case of suspension.

Building administrators represented the following racial and

gender composition: five African American females; four African
69 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

American males; three White males; five White females; and, one
Hispanic female. Data regarding administrator age, level of education
and years of experience were not a part of the analysis.

The Superintendent of the school district granted permission to

conduct this research and provided access to district records for this
purpose.

Procedures

The disciplinary data were collected from the monthly

suspension report submitted by each building administrator. Data
generated from this report consisted of building number, administrator,
teacher, date of incident, student name, age, race, gender, infraction
code, number of days suspended and a short narrative describing the
student behavior resulting in out of school suspension.

Children received referrals to building principals by classroom

teachers for actions demonstrating a violation of School Board policy.
Once a child was referred, a building principal or Assistant Principal
assumed the responsibility for assigning in school or out of school
suspension, based on the district’s disciplinary infraction code. The
district considered thirty-six possible violations of its disciplinary code
when assigning disciplinary action. Building administrators had
discretion in the application of disciplinary policies, provided the
action of a student did not endanger the health, safety, and well-being
of students and/or faculty and did not interfere with the educational
process. The district’s disciplinary policy encouraged progressive
discipline, based on the nature and severity of the infraction.

Data from the monthly suspension report was coded and

subsequently analyzed at the incident and building level. Personal data
pertaining to student name, address and any other identifying
information was redacted in keeping with the district’s request for
anonymity.
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 70

Design

The researcher used descriptive statistics to ascertain whether

or not there was a relationship between the variables. Independent
variables pertaining to student race, gender, infraction and grade level
were incorporated as part of the research. Dependent variables
pertaining to principal race, gender, duration of suspension, school
level, infraction code and building location were analyzed to
determine if there was a relationship between variables. Pearson’s
Correlation measured the linear association between dependent and
independent variables, assuming that the identified variables were
normally distributed. The data was entered and analyzed using
Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).

This study analyzed all student suspensions and administrator

disciplinary actions for the school year 1999-2000. The independent
and dependent variables in this research were repeated on each
subject. All suspensions were considered, despite the fact that there
were multiple cases of suspensions for different students.

Organismic variables for principals and students assigned were

similar in coding. Non-organismic variables included code
assignments related to time (duration of suspension), grade and
infraction code. Only those students committing disciplinary
infractions resulting in out of school suspensions were part of the
sample.

The primary purpose of this research was to ascertain whether

or not there was a relationship between the gender and ethnicity of
building principals, the type of student infractions and the suspension
rate of students.
71 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

Three major research questions were identified to formulate

this research:

1. What relationship existed between the ethnicity of

principals and the suspension rates of students in a
small, urban Pennsylvania school district?
2. What relationship existed between the gender of the
principal and the time (duration) of student
suspensions?
3. What relationship existed between the ethnicity of the
principal, the type of student infractions and the
number of suspensions?

Results

This researcher sought to determine whether there was a

relationship between principal race and gender, the number of days
(duration/time) assigned to students in out of school suspension and
the type of student infractions assigned according to principal
ethnicity. The research analyzed all student suspensions in the district
for the school year 1999-2000. Table 1 reflects the distribution of
student population by race during the 1999-2000 school year.

Principal Race and Duration/Time of Suspensions

This portion of the research sought to determine whether there

was a relationship between the race of the principal and the duration
(time) of suspensions. Analysis of the data using Pearson Correlation
yielded significant results, supporting a strong relationship between
the race of the principal and the duration (time) of student suspensions.

African American principals were responsible for an unusually

high rate of suspensions at each time interval. Time of suspension at
each interval was substantially higher for African American principals
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 72

than for White and Hispanic principals, with a duration of three days
as a preferential choice. Students assigned to out of school suspension
by African American principals received higher suspension rates in the
three, five and ten-day suspension category, irrespective of student
race and gender.

African American principals assigned 1073 individual

suspensions in the three day category, compared to 234 cases of
suspensions by White principals in the same category. Students
receiving three-day suspensions were four times more likely to receive
three-day suspensions from African American principals than from
White principals. African American principals were responsible for
87.3% of all five-day suspensions in the district. There were 402 cases
of five-day suspensions in the district with African American
principals assigning 351 cases of suspensions as compared to 31 by
White principals and 20 by the Hispanic principal. In the ten-day time
category, African American principals were responsible for 84.2% of
the district’s ten-day suspensions. There were 165 cases of ten-day
suspensions in the district with 139 cases assigned by African
American principals, eleven by White principals and 15 by the one
Hispanic principal. Table 2 reflects the results of this analysis.

Table 2

Duration of Student Suspensions by principal Race N=4498

Principal Duration of Suspension in Days

Race
10 1 3 5
African 0448 1073 351 139
American
White 1186 0234 031 011
Hispanic 0124 0094 020 015
73 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

Principal Gender and Duration/Time of Suspensions

Analysis of the data in this district revealed a relationship

between the gender of the principal and the duration (time) of student
suspensions. Female principals were more likely to assign three, five
and ten-day suspensions than their male colleagues. Conversely, male
principals were more likely to assign one-day suspensions than their
female colleagues were. The results of these findings are depicted in
Table 3.

Table 3

Distribution of Student Suspensions by principal Gender and Duration

of Suspension in Days. N=4498

Principal’s Duration of Suspension in Days

Gender
10 1 3 5
Female 800 876 324 151
Male 958 525 078 014

Female principals assigned 876 cases of three-day suspensions

or 63% of all three-day suspensions. Female principals assigned the
majority of five-day suspensions. There were 324 cases of suspension
or 81%, assigned by female principals. Female principals assigned
92% of student ten-day suspensions. Conversely, male principals
assigned the majority of one and two-day suspensions in the district,
representing 958 cases of one-day suspensions (54%) and 414 cases of
two-day suspensions (57%).

Principal Race, Student Infraction and Number of Suspensions

Students within the district were more likely to receive

suspensions from White principals for simple assault (fighting),
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 74

cutting class, lack of respect to staff, disruptive classroom behavior,

and classroom disturbances. White principals suspended students for
possession of drugs and/or alcohol. African American principals
assigned suspensions for simple assault (fighting), disruptive
classroom behavior, other (student actions lacking a definitive
infraction), and running or wandering in the halls. The Hispanic
principal assigned suspensions for cutting class, other, and simple
assault (fighting). Table 4 reflects these findings.

Table 4

Distribution of Suspensions by Select Infraction/Suspension Codes

and principal Race. N=3792

Suspension Codes
Principal Race 101 104 106 206 207 208 301 303 501
African American 111 053 144 281 185 074 867 000 223
White 123 030 010 162 257 188 659 012 120
Hispanic 017 005 006 008 104 001 071 000 084

Note: Infraction codes as approved by School Board and implemented

by District principals. This data represents the most frequently
assigned suspensions by building Administrators accounting for 84.3%
of all student suspensions.
101 Classroom Disturbance
104 Abusive language
106 Running or Wandering in Halls
206 Disruptive Classroom Behavior
207 Cutting Class
208 Lack of Respect to Staff
301 Assault and Battery – Simple (includes fighting)
303 Possession/Use of Unauthorized Substances (Drugs/Alcohol)
501 Other
75 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

Discussion

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a

relationship between the ethnicity and gender of principals in the
suspension of students in a small Pennsylvania school district.

The research ascertained there was a strong relationship

between the ethnicity of the principal and the duration (time) of
suspension. Students assigned to out of school suspensions received a
higher rate of suspensions in the three, five and ten-day category when
the building administrator was African American. Sixteen hundred and
forty (1640) three, five and ten-day suspensions were assigned by
African American principals, as compared to 405 three, five and ten-
day suspensions by White and Hispanic principals.

Female principals assigned more three, five and ten-day

suspensions. Conversely, male principals accounted for more one-day
suspensions than female principals. Suspensions by male principals
accounted for 958 one-day suspensions, 525 two-day suspensions, 78
five-day suspensions and 14 ten-day suspensions.

African American principals were more likely to assign suspensions

for fighting, disruptive classroom behavior, other and running or
wandering in the halls. Students received more suspensions from
White principals for fighting, cutting class, lack of respect to staff,
disruptive classroom behavior, classroom disturbances and possession
of drugs or alcohol. The Hispanic principal was responsible for
assigning more suspensions in the categories of cutting class, other
and fighting.

Despite the differing categories African American principals

assigned more frequent and longer student suspensions than White or
Hispanic principals despite parity in the distribution of building
administrators by race and gender.
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 76

The research findings of this study are seminal. Previous

researchers examined the overrepresentation of African American
students without focusing on the ethnicity and gender of building
administrators. This researcher agrees with previous findings
determining that African American students were more likely to
receive suspensions than White students were. The question remains
as to why students received longer and more frequent suspensions
from African American principals.

What factors contribute to the magnitude of student

suspensions in a district where African American principals constituted
50% of building administrators? Were these administrators practicing
within-0race discrimination, class discrimination, self-imposed racial
profiling, or a combination of these plus other factors?

The implications of the findings in this research represent a

paradox for educational policy makers. The findings cannot be
generalized insofar as all African American principals are concerned in
their capacity as instructional leaders across the country. Perhaps the
socio-cultural environment of this particular community contributed
substantially to the obsequious consent demonstrated by this district’s
African American principals.

The implications of this research demand further inquiry in

other districts. The consequences of the actions of all principals,
irrespective of race or gender, affect student achievement, particularly
in an era of increased accountability. These potential consequences
engender a plethora of questions that remain largely unanswered.

(1) Do African American principals assign longer and more

frequent suspensions as a method of insuring job
security and career advancement?
(2) Do African American principals envision suspensions
as a method of taking charge and insuring building
77 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL__________

control?
(3) Are African American principals disenfranchised from
children residing in poor communities because of
income, class and culture?
(4) Are African American principals more concerned with
the resiliency of children, in preparation for adult
challenges?
(5) Is Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, particularly those
needs associated with affiliation and security, more
pronounced in African American principals?
(6) Do African American and female principals receive less
respect from predominantly poor and minority
children?
(7) Is acquiescence or fear a factor for White principals
when assigning suspensions to predominantly poor and
minority children?
(8) Does the lack of suspensions by White principals
represent tolerance or other more pervasive cultural
issues?
(9) Are female principals less tolerant of student
misbehavior than male principals? If this is the case,
then why?

Concluding Remarks

In conclusion, further research is required to address social,

cultural and psychological issues, particularly if African American
children in this district are to achieve their educational and social
potential. Student achievement is inversely related to the number of
out of school suspensions assigned by building administrators. All
district policy makers must strive, therefore, to insure that the entire
issue of out of school suspensions, student achievement and equity
transcends race, class and within-race issues. Only then will urban
districts begin to improve student outcomes for all children.
 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 78

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 Patricia Hoffman-Miller 80

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