The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) found that Pasco County School District discriminated against students with disabilities through its use of school discipline, threat assessment practices, and referrals of students to law enforcement. The DOJ will monitor how the district implements changes to improve and support students with disabilities.
News Room
DOJ Reaches Settlement with Pasco County School District Following Investigation into Disproportionate Expulsion and Use of Baker Act on Students with Disabilities
Friday, March 08, 2024
Helpful Terms:
- Settlement agreement: terms and obligations that everyone needs to follow to end a case
- Baker Act: a law that allows people, including students, to be taken to a facility for mental health testing even against their will
Overview
- The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) entered a settlement agreement with the Pasco County School District.
- The DOJ found that the district discriminated against students with disabilities through its use of school discipline, threat assessment practices, and referrals of students to law enforcement.
- The district violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
- The DOJ will monitor how Pasco County School District changes to improve and support students with disabilities.
What did the Department of Justice find in their investigation?
- The DOJ found that the Pasco County School District would take punitive actions with students with disabilities instead of more appropriate, de-escalating measures. The district routinely:
- Suspended students with disabilities for disability-related behavior,
- Implemented threat assessments on disabled students, inaccurately and inappropriately coupling disability-related behavior with criminal behavior.
- Arrested and involuntarily committed disabled students to a mental health facility under Florida’s Baker Act, instead of providing support for disability-related behavior.
- These actions violate Title 2 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This part of the ADA protects students with disabilities from discrimination in public schools.
What does the Pasco County School District need to do now?
The district must improve its treatment of students with disabilities in many ways. The Department of Justice will monitor the district to ensure they follow the plan.
The district must:
- Ensure that district personnel accurately assess disability-related behaviors, identify appropriate interventions for those behaviors and monitor the implementation of those interventions;
- Hire a consultant with expertise in behavior interventions who will assist in updating its policies and practices;
- Update its student code of conduct, threat assessment process and process for calling law enforcement to ensure that the district is adequately considering disability-related behaviors and modifying its policies and procedures to avoid discrimination based on disability;
- Develop appropriate trainings to help schools implement the agreement and respond appropriately to student behavior and;
- Improve data collection and analysis systems and regularly evaluate data to ensure students with disabilities are not excluded from school for disability-related behaviors through the district’s discipline, threat assessment and law enforcement referral practices.
Disability Rights Florida's Involvement
Disability Rights Florida is a proud member of the PASCO (People Against the Surveillance of Children And Overpolicing) Coalition, an advocacy group committed to fighting against data surveillance and over-policing of children in Pasco County. Our dedicated staff worked closely with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and connected them with the students and families in the county whom we have assisted through our advocacy and legal efforts.
“Students with disabilities deserve a safe, welcoming, and supportive environment to learn. We’re happy that the DOJ will hold Pasco County School District accountable and will monitor the implementation of these important changes.” - Peter Sleasman, Executive Director of Disability Rights Florida
DRF Media Coverage
ABC Action News
Link to article: https://bit.ly/3IwbFCd
“So when a student with disabilities has behaviors that are related to their disability that invokes certain rights and responsibilities that the school has to accommodate them," - Caitlyn Clibbon, Director of Community and Healthcare Services
Fox News Radio
"Some of these kids are seven, eight, nine years old, very young. And it's just it's it's unimaginable to me what that must be like as a seven year old." - Caitlyn Clibbon
"Often an effect of the failure to properly accommodate the disability was an increase in the number of times that the student was either removed from the classroom by the teacher or calls to an SRO for law enforcement." - Caitlyn Clibbon