The gap between black students being suspended more often than white students was found in all seven.

“We have a moral obligation to end racial inequity in school discipline — particularly here in the Richmond region given our history as the former capital of the Confederacy,” said Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras.

Local findings

Across the region, 20% of black students were put out of school during the 2015-16 school year, according to data from the Virginia Department of Education used in the study.

That’s more than double the percentage of Latino students who receive out of school suspensions (8%) and four times the percentage of white students (5%), the same data shows.

The rates increased drastically when students went from elementary school into middle and high school, with black students more than three times as likely (29%) to be suspended than white students once they leave elementary school.

Some of the infractions students were suspended for were subjective, such as disrespect and defiance rather than an objective infraction like vandalism, according to the study.