| Mandatory punishments for disciplinary offenses have been included in school districts' Student Codes of Conduct since the Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 mandated that districts have zero tolerance policies in order to receive their federal education dollars. Thirteen years later, the majority of the 67 school districts in Florida have expanded their use of zero tolerance policies to include infractions other than those that were included to keep guns out of schools. This policy analysis, the first comprehensive study of its kind, evaluated the zero tolerance policies found in all 67 of Florida's Student Codes of Conduct with the intent of providing policy-makers and educational leaders with practical, action--oriented recommendations on ways they can improve how students are disciplined in Florida.;This study examined the history of zero tolerance polices, including the practice of adding offenses other than the possession of guns to these policies. This policy analysis detailed the differences between large school districts in Florida, those over 15,000 students, with the small school districts in Florida and their decisions on what to include in their districts' zero tolerance policies. This study concluded with recommendations on what should be in a model Student Code of Conduct as well as a recommendation for starting a Three-CHANCE (Changing Habits After New Character Education) system of educational placements. |
