Child protective services involvement and exclusionary school discipline

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Educational Policy
• Social Work

Background:

• Child Protective Services (CPS) involvement is a critical area of social welfare and child protection.
• Out-of-school suspensions represent a significant disciplinary action with potential long-term educational consequences.
• Understanding the relationship between CPS contact and school discipline is vital for effective intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between Child Protective Services (CPS) contact and out-of-school suspensions among a large cohort of students.
• To determine if CPS contact precedes or follows the onset of behavioral issues leading to suspension.
• To examine the differential impact of foster care placement on suspension rates.

Main Methods:

• A quasi-experimental design was employed using longitudinal data from 49,918 Wisconsin students.
• The study compared outcomes for students with recent CPS contact, future CPS contact, and no CPS contact.
• Data spanned school years 2010-2019, following students from ages 5-6 to 14-15.

Main Results:

• Both recent (without foster care) and future CPS contact were associated with higher odds of out-of-school suspension compared to no contact.
• Increased odds of suspension were observed prior to CPS contact, indicating pre-existing behavioral challenges.
• Foster care placement was associated with reduced odds of suspension for White children and those in special education.

Conclusions:

• The findings suggest that factors leading to suspension may predate CPS involvement, challenging the notion that system-induced stress is the primary driver.
• CPS contact itself does not appear to substantially increase suspension risk during or after involvement.
• Foster care may serve a protective role in mitigating school suspensions for specific student groups.