ORCID

https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9186-6291

Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Education (Ed.D.)

Department

Administrative and Instructional Leadership

First Advisor

James R. Campbell

Second Advisor

Anthony Annunziato

Third Advisor

Richard Bernato

Abstract

In the United States, millions of students face out-of-school suspensions from public schools each year. Black and Hispanic students, in particular, are suspended at higher rates than their white peers (Cobb-Clark et al., 2015). Students miss class time and valuable learning, which widens the achievement gap between Black, Hispanic, and White students. Suspended students also face additional consequences, such as social alienation from schools and a higher likelihood of engagement in delinquency. Several programs seek to improve the effects of suspensions on students’ outcomes. In this dissertation response, I examine the effectiveness of one such program: an alternative suspension educational program at a large high school with an extremely diverse student body of 3,000 students. The program is designed to meet the educational and social-emotional needs of suspended students. I answer this question by examining students' English grades in the traditional and alternative programs. I find that students performed better in the alternative suspension program, and males outperformed females.

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