Virginia, the state that leads the nation in the school-to-prison pipeline, also disproportionately suspends African-American male students and those with disabilities from school for issues as minor as a sarcastic tone, a cell phone, or too many unexcused absences. "Too often, so-called 'zero-tolerance' policies – however well-intentioned – make students feel unwelcome in their own schools," Attorney General Eric Holder said in 2014, at the Maryland launch of a new school discipline initiative.

More...