District reports reductions in exclusionary discipline; Jason Lee middle school credited for restorative work

The Vancouver School District presented data March 25 showing a drop in exclusionary discipline and narrower disparities for several student groups after the first 120 days of the school year compared with the first 120 days of the prior year.

Executive Director Janelle Ephraim told the board the district’s measurable outcome is to reduce disparity in exclusionary discipline between student groups by 10% and increase restorative practices by 20%; district staff said the data show progress toward that goal. The district measures “exclusionary risk” as the percentage of students subjected to exclusionary discipline at least once during the school year and compares exclusionary days per 100 students to track disparities.

Ephraim said the district saw reductions in exclusionary risk for several groups: Native American students from 9% to 5%, Black students from 11% to 10%, Hispanic/Latinx students from 5% to 4%, and Asian students from 2% to 1%. Staff reported an 18.5% reduction in racial-group disparity in exclusion days per 100 students, and a 48.2% reduction in the disparity between students receiving special education services and those who do not. The district also flagged areas needing additional focus, including students experiencing homelessness and continuing disproportionate exclusion for students with IEPs.

The board heard a school-level case study from Jason Lee Middle School. District presenter Andre (staff member) said Jason Lee reduced racial disparity in exclusionary days by 61.3% and reduced the disparity for students receiving special education by 90.7%. Jason Lee restorative justice specialist Julia Carstensen described practices used at the school, including pre-restorative interviews, weekly “foundations” social-emotional lessons, student representation through a student council, an academic-prep class for sixth graders, restorative circles in special-education settings, and a RISE alternative-learning program partnered with community organizations.

Julia Carstensen said restorative work often happens before discipline is imposed: “When there is like tension or conflict … this is happening before discipline occurs, or is needed. So when there's tension between individuals, they'll work with me and really identify, separately. We call them pre restorative interviews.” Carstensen said those interviews and community-building lessons have contributed to reduced incidents; she told the board Jason Lee saw a 43.2% decrease in reported incidents of hate and bias this year.

Board members asked how the district balances keeping the school community safe with restorative practices when behavior escalates. Carstensen and Janelle Ephraim said restorative processes aim to distinguish incidents that require exclusion from those that can be addressed through repair and learning; Ephraim noted the district still uses exclusion when safety requires it. No formal policy changes or votes were recorded in the study session; the presentation was framed as progress monitoring.