L4GG’s Model Policy on Corporal Punishment

The following model policy is based on the Protecting Students in Schools Act of 2021,1 which is supported by at least 158 organizations representing teachers, parents, students, children’s rights advocates, disability rights advocates, education reformers, civil rights advocates, and medical, psychological, and social work professionals.2

To read L4GG’s full policy report on Corporal Punishment, which includes a survey of relevant state law in the 19 states that allow corporal punishment and hyperlink citations to those provisions in each state’s code, click here.

  1. Definitions

    2. “Corporal punishment” means a deliberate act which cases the student to feel physical pain for the purpose of discipline, including an act of physical force, such as striking, spanking, or paddling, inflicted on a student’s body, requiring a student to assume a painful physical position, or the use of chemical sprays, electroshock weapons, or stun guns on a student’s body.”

    “Positive behavioral interventions and supports” means a schoolwide, systematic approach that:
    1. embeds evidence-based practices and data-driven decision making to create a safe and productive school climate and culture, achieve improved academic and social outcomes, and increase learning for all students, including students with the most complex and intensive behavioral needs;
    2. encompasses a range of systemic and individualized positive strategies to teach and reinforce school-expected behaviors, while discouraging and diminishing undesirable behaviors; and
    3. supports students in their own behavior development process while treating them with dignity, respect, and compassion.
  1. Prohibition of Corporal Punishment.

    1. No student shall be subjected to corporal punishment by a teacher, school official, law enforcement officer, school security guard, or program personnel.
    2. If a student is subjected to corporal punishment in violation of subsection (a) of this Act, the educational program serving such student shall notify, in writing, not later than 24 hours after such punishment occurs, the facts of such punishment to the:
      1. parent(s) or guardian(s) of each student;
      2. State educational agency;
      3. local law enforcement agency; and
      4. relevant protection and advocacy system in the case of a student who is an individual with a disability
    3. Notwithstanding any immunity law, a student or parent of such student who has been subjected to corporal punishment in violation of subsection (a) of this Act may file a civil action in any State court of competent jurisdiction against the program under which the violation occurred for attorneys’ fees, expert fees, injunctive relief, and compensatory damages.
    4. The Attorney General may initiate a civil action in any appropriate court against such parties and for such relief as may be appropriate for violations of subsection (a) of this Act.
  1. Enforcement

    1. If a school or local educational agency fails to comply with the provisions of this Act, the [State Secretary of Education] shall:
      1. withhold, in whole or in part, further payments under an applicable program; and
      2. issue a complaint to compel compliance of the State educational agency through a cease and desist order.
  1. Grant Authority

    1. The [State Secretary of Education] may award grants to State educational agencies to improve school climate and culture by implementing positive behavioral interventions and supports and other models to address student behavior and reduce the use of exclusionary and aversive disciplinary practices or interventions in public elementary and secondary schools.
    2. A state educational agency receiving funds under this section may use such funds to:
      1. implement positive behavioral interventions and supports, restorative justice inventions, trauma-informed care, multi-tiered systems of support, crisis and de-escalation interventions, conflict resolution, peer mediation, anger management and counseling, implicit bias training, and culturally responsive teaching;
      2. hire social workers, counselors, psychologists, and restorative justice practitioners; and
      3. implement other models and training for school personnel to address student behavior and reduce the use of exclusionary and aversive discipline practices and interventions, including mentoring, conflict resolution
    3. A state educational agency receiving funds under this section shall collect and annually report to the [State Secretary of Education] data on school suspensions, arrests, referrals to law enforcement, and use of physical restraint against a student, disaggregated by race, gender, disability, and English learner status.
    4. A State educational agency may be eligible for a subsequent grant by submitting an application that demonstrates the:
      1. effective use of grant funds to carry out the required activities during the previous grant period; and
      2. decrease of at least one of the following:
        1. exclusionary and aversive discipline practices or interventions, including in-school suspensions, out-of-school suspensions, and expulsions;
        2. school-related arrests; and
        3. referrals of students to law enforcement.
  1. Limitation of Authority - Nothing in this Act shall be construed to

    1. restrict or limit any other rights or remedies otherwise available to students or parents under Federal, State, or local law or regulation;
    2. restrict or limit state or local laws, regulations, or policies that provide for more stringent prohibitions or limitations on the use of corporal punishment than provided for in this Act; or
    3. prevent a sworn law enforcement officer from carrying out the lawful duties of the officer under otherwise applicable law.
  1. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act for fiscal year 2023 and each fiscal year thereafter.
 

1. Protecting Our Students in Schools Act, H.R. 3836, 117th Cong. (2021),https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/3836

2. There are at least two lists of groups that support the Protecting Students in Schools Act of 2021. See U.S. Congressman A. Donald M. McEachin, “Reps. McEachin, Bonamici, Sen. Murphy Introduce Legislation to End Corporal Punishment in Schools,” June 10, 2021, https://mceachin.house.gov/media/press-releases/reps-mceachin-bonamici-sen-murphy-introduce-legislation-end-corporal-punishm ent; and The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Letter to Congress, Jan. 19, 2022, https://civilrights.org/resource/co-sponsor-legislation-to-advance-safe-healthy-and-inclusive-school-climates/.

In addition to Lawyers for Good Government, these groups include Advocates for Children of New York, Advocates For Justice, Advocates for Special Education, Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint, American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, American Association of University Women, American Atheists, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), American Federation of Teachers, American Humanist Association, American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association Division 31, Association of University Centers on Disabilities, Attachment Parenting International, Autism Society of Texas, Autistic Self Advocacy Network, Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network, AVANZAR, AWACE Life Care Center, Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, Brain Injury Association of America, Center for American Progress, Center for Disability Rights, Center for Health and Health Care in Schools, Center for Learner Equity, CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers, Children's Defense Fund, Children’s Rights Clinic, Southwestern Law School, Clearinghouse on Women’s Issues, Coalition of Texans with Disabilities, Colorado Children’s Campaign, Committee for Children, CommunicationFIRST, Conneticut Psychological Association, Council for Exceptional Children, Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Crimes against Children Research Center, Dignity in Schools Campaign, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, Disability Rights Maine, Disability Rights Wisconsin, Easterseals Central Texas, Education Law Center-PA, Educators for Excellence, EduColor, El Sol Science and Arts Academy, Empowering Pacific Islander Communities, Equality California, Family Voices NJ, Federation for Children with Special Needs, Feminist Majority Foundation, First Focus on Children, Florida Psychological Association, FORGE, Inc., Futures Without Violence, Georgia Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, Georgia Psychological Association, Girls Empowerment Network, Girls Inc., Girls Inc. of Memphis, GLSEN, Hispanic Federation, Human Rights Campaign, IDRA (Intercultural Development Research Association), Illinois Migrant Council, Inspiring Futures for All, Intercultural Development Research Association, International Center for Assault Prevention, Inc., Kalamazoo Community Foundation, Kentucky Psychological Association, Legal Aid Justice Center, Lives in the Balance, LULAC-IL, Maine Developmental Disabilities Council, Maine Parent Federation, Maine Psychological Association, MANA, A National Latina Organization, Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence, Massachusetts Attorneys for Student Educational Rights, MEASURE, Michigan Alliance for Special Education, Michigan Psychological Association, Minaret Foundation, MindsetMatters LLC, Minnesota Psychological Association, Missouri Psychological Association, Movement Advancement Project, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities, National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, National Association of School Psychologists, National Association of Secondary School Principals, National Association of Social Workers - Texas Chapter, National Association of the Deaf, National Black Child Development Institute, National Center for Learning Disabilities, National Center for Parent Leadership, Advocacy & Community Empowerment (National PLACE), National Center for Transgender Equality, National Center for Youth Law, National Crittenton, National Disability Rights Network (NDRN), National Down Syndrome Congress, National Education Association, National Federation of Families, National Initiative to End Corporal Punishment, National Network to End Domestic Violence, National Organization for Women, National Parents Union, National Prevention Science Coalition to Improve Lives, National PTA, National Urban League, National Women’s Law Center, New Jersey Safe Schools Coalition, New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Nollie Jenkins Family Center, Inc., North Carolina Justice Center, Our Vote Texas, Parent to Parent of Georgia, Inc, Pennsylvania Psychological Association, Prevent Child Abuse America, Public Advocacy for Kids (PAK), RespectAbility, Restoring Community LLC, Safe Schools Action Network, Silver State Equality-Nevada, Social-Emotional Learning Alliance for Texas, Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice (Division 37 of the American Psychological Association), Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (Division 53, American Psychological Association), Society of Pediatric Psychology (Division 54 of the American Psychological Association), Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, Southern Echo Inc., Southern Education Foundation, SPAN Parent Advocacy Network, Speak Up! Special Education Advocacy, SPLC Action Fund, Stand for Children, Texans Care for Children, Texas Appleseed, Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, Texas Parent to Parent, The Advocacy Institute, The Arc of the United States, The Arc of West Virginia, The Daniel Initiative, The Education Trust, The Education Trust in Texas, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, The Parents’ Place of MD, The Trevor Project, The Up Institute, U.S. Alliance to End the Hitting of Children, UnidosUS, United Methodist Women, YWCA Kalamazoo, and YWCA USA.