BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A new state report reveals troubling racial disparities in Buffalo Public Schools suspensions, but local officials have secured funding for a program designed to help students and families navigate the discipline system.
The New York State Attorney General's Office found that Black and Latino students in Buffalo face suspension at disproportionately higher rates than their white peers. According to the report, Black students were more than six times more likely to receive out-of-school suspensions, while Latino students were nearly four times more likely to be suspended.
To address these disparities, local elected officials have secured about $35,000 in state funding for the Western New York Law Center's School Discipline Project. The program focuses on combating inequities in school discipline systems by helping parents advocate for their students and appeal suspensions at no cost.
"Because the numbers are pretty disturbing," said Assemblyman Jonathan Rivera, who represents Buffalo and Lackawanna.
Rivera, along with New York State Senator April Baskin, obtained the funding to expand the successful three-year-old program. The initiative teaches parents how to advocate for their students, appeal suspensions, and understand their options within the school discipline system.
"We have to sort of examine and say, does a 7, 8, 9-year-old need to be suspended for long periods of time. What does that do for their own ability to retain information and be a productive student?" Rivera said.
Samantha White, supervising attorney at the Western New York Law Center, who started the program, said it has helped hundreds of students over the years.
"I've helped kids who were dealing with a cycle of suspension, got them into the right setting the right school and I have one that's graduating early and hasn't been suspended since when we get kids the support they need, we change lives," White said.
The expanded funding will allow the program to offer walk-in clinics at the Belle Center, where families can speak directly with lawyers about their cases. The program will also include a mentorship component.
"So we'll go beyond just representing and we will really become more involved in the lives of these students so that we can really impact outcomes. We can provide the support all along the way," White said.
Rivera, a product of Buffalo Public Schools who attended schools on the West Side, believes the district has improved over the years and hopes this program will contribute to further progress.
"There's a space in the community, not downtown, not the Board of Education, but a space right on the west side where parents are going to be able to speak to someone, staff from the Western New York Law Center, and they're able to get information on how they could potentially appeal a suspension or if nothing else, be better informed about how these sort of things can be dealt with," Rivera said.
The expanded the School Discipline Project will begin March 1 at the Belle Center on Maryland Street, operating on Thursdays bi-weekly. Currently, it is offering help to parents at the Frank E. Merriweather Library on Tuesdays from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
