Is Out-Of-School Suspension Out Of Date?

Out-of-school suspension is increasingly seen as a contributing factor to poor academic outcomes. Students get sent home and get behind in their school work, and some never catch up. In response, schools across the nation, including several in Wyoming, have created alternatives. One of them is the Albany County Expelled and Suspended Program, mostly commonly referred to as ACES. The two days I went to visit ACES there were surprisingly no students. But I was still welcomed by Dwayne Tillman, the program’s one and only teacher. For him, he said, “It’s a good thing when no one in the district is suspended or expelled.” But he said this rarely happens. “This has been our first week that it’s been so slow.” He said he can have upwards of 10 students in his class at a time. Some show up for a day. Some stay for year, if they’ve been expelled. And they’re in any grade —from kindergartners to high school seniors. He explained how, “The other day we had a third grader and a sophomore at the