Journal of K-12 Educational Research 55 centers, professional development courses addressing the specific needs of overrepresented populations’ in school discipline will improve the adult behaviors and cultural mismatches which contribute to the high numbers of Black males being sent out of the classroom. Conclusions School discipline is a major component in determining the success of a campus, district, state, and nation. Discipline administrators and teachers face day-today challenges with how to deal with the behaviors of students of a different social and cultural background. The variety of roles discipline administrators have at the campus level often leaves little time to work on changing student behaviors often leading to exclusionary discipline placements for students of color. To influence discipline at the campus level, discipline administrators and teachers need training and continued professional development on alternative discipline strategies and cultural factors which affect the populations they serve. The purpose of the current study was to examine middle school assistant principals’ perceptions of their role in administering policies and procedures and the impact of policies and procedures and race on discipline decisions. If district leaders know the individual beliefs of discipline administrators have a greater impact than discipline policies and procedures on the campus, it is essential that they consistently implement diversity training and professional development based on current research to change the trajectory of exclusionary discipline practices for students of color, especially Black males. Public school should not look different for specific subgroups of students if we are truly in the business of educating all students regardless of nationality, sex, race, or gender. References Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research. Pearson. Creswell, J. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). Sage. Education Commission of the States. (2012). ECS state policy database on school safety. https://www.ecs.org/ state-education-policy-tracking/ Fabelo, T., Thompson, M., Plotkin, M., Carmichael, D., Marchbanks, M., & Booth, E. (2011). Breaking schools’ rules: A statewide study of how school discipline relates to students’ success and juvenile justice involvement. https:// csgjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/ Breaking_Schools_Rules_Report_Final.pdf King, J. B., Jr. (2016). Press call on 2013-14 civil rights data collection with U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. www2.ed.gov/news/av/audio/2016/06072016.doc Koon, D. (2013). Exclusionary school discipline: An issue brief and review of the literature. https://www.law.berkeley. edu/files/BMOC_ Exclusionary_School_Discipline_ Final.pdf Leithwood, K., & Levin, B. (2008). Understanding and assessing the impact of leadership development. In J. Lumby, G. Crow, & P. Pashiardis (Eds.), International handbook on the preparation and development of school leaders (pp. 280-302). Routledge. Losen, D. (2011). Discipline policies, successful schools, and racial justice. http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/ discipline-policies Losen, D., Hodson, C., Keith, M., II, Morrison, K., & Belway, S. (2015). Are we closing the school discipline gap? https://www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/resources/ projects/center-for-civil-rights-remedies/school-toprison-folder/federal-reports/are-we-closing-theschool-discipline-gap/losen-are-we-closing-disciplinegap-2015-summary.pdf National Clearinghouse on Supportive School Discipline. (2017). Discipline disparities. http:// supportiveschooldiscipline.org/learn/reference-guides/ discipline-disparities National School Boards Association. (2013). Addressing the out-of-school suspension crisis: A policy guide for school
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