Photo by Petroni Media Company

Congresswoman Katherine Clark, who represents Framingham, joined a White House strategy session on school discipline with experts from across the country on Wednesday, July 22. The White House gathering of school officials and child advocates came together to reevaluate standards in school discipline, including expulsions, suspensions, and other measures that can create barriers to academic success. Clark serves on the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce and has advocated for schools to implement supportive learning environments instead of punitive measures.

"When children come to school bearing the weight of neglect, hunger, abuse or other trauma, it's difficult to learn," Clark said, in a statement. "Instead of helping them meet their challenges, severe school policies can cut off our most vulnerable students' path to success and create a school to prison pipeline. It's important for us to empower teachers with modern, evidence-based approaches that set high expectations for achievement, and promote long term academic success." Clark has introduced bills that emphasize the benefits of trauma-informed learning environments.