A. The Department shall develop a method to analyze local school system discipline data to determine whether there is a disproportionate impact on minority students.

B. The Department may use the discrepancy model to assess the impact of discipline on special education students.

C. If the Department identifies a schools discipline process as having a disproportionate impact on minority students or a discrepant impact on special education students, the local school system shall prepare and present to the State Board a plan to reduce the impact within 1 year and eliminate it within 3 years.

D. The local school system will report its progress annually to the State Board.

(d) Regulations. --

• (1) Subject to the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) of this section, each county board shall adopt regulations designed to create and maintain within the schools under its jurisdiction the atmosphere of order and discipline necessary for effective learning.
• (2) The regulations adopted by a county board under this subsection:
• (i) Shall provide for educational and behavioral interventions, restorative approaches, counseling, and student and parent conferencing;
• (ii) Shall provide alternative programs, which may include in-school suspension, suspension, expulsion, or other disciplinary measures that are deemed appropriate; and
• (iii) Shall state that the primary purpose of any disciplinary measure is rehabilitative, restorative, and educational.

(e) Disaggregation of data. --

• (1) On or before October 1 each year, the Department shall submit to the Governor and, in accordance with § 2-1257 of the State Government Article, the General Assembly, a student discipline data report that includes a description of the uses of restorative approaches in the State and a review of disciplinary practices and policies in the State.
• (2) The Department shall disaggregate the information in any student discipline data report prepared by the Department by race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, eligibility for free or reduced price meals or an equivalent measure of socioeconomic status, English language proficiency, and type of discipline for:
• (i) The State;
• (ii) Each local school system; and
• (iii) Each public school.
• (3) Special education-related data in any report prepared under this subsection shall be disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and gender.

(f) Collection of data on alternative school discipline practices. --

• (1) In this subsection, "alternative school discipline practice" means a discipline practice used in a public school that is not an in-school suspension or an out-of-school suspension.
• (2) The Department shall collect data on alternative school discipline practices in public schools for each local school system, including:
• (i) The types of alternative school discipline practices that are used in a local school system; and
• (ii) The type of misconduct for which an alternative discipline practice is used.

This document highlights strategies to decrease race disproportionality in discipline.