Empowering Student Voices in the School to Prison Pipeline

Purpose & objective

The purpose of this panel session is to explore issues with the schools-to-prison pipeline and highlight student’s experiences within the juvenile justice system. The goal of the panel is to encourage attendees to create a new mindset about the school-to-prison pipeline and evaluate their policies to ensure equitable access to education is available for all students. Attendees will be inspired by the stories of students on the panel and will be encouraged to provide successful education to the needs of this diverse population. Public school educators can play a pivotal role in reducing the number of students in the school-to-prison pipeline by implementing appropriate diversion tactics. This panel will highlight those division tactics through the powerful stories of formerly and currently incarcerated youth.

Outline

Outline
1. Introduce the panelist and their background (10 minutes)
2. Ask the panelists questions in these four areas:
a. Education (10 minutes)
b. Educational Technology (10 minutes)
c. Educational Policies (10 minutes)
d. School to Prison Pipeline (10 minutes)
3. Take questions from the audience (8 minutes)
4. Bring the session to a close with each panelist sharing a call to action (2 minutes)

Supporting research

https://www.sentencingproject.org/publications/too-many-locked-doors/

https://www.breakfree-ed.org/

BreakFree is considered an expert in this field and will design the panel. The student presenters will give a first hand account of their educational experiences and outcomes.