Judith Kafka to Speak on ‘Zero Tolerance’ Oct. 23

The School of Education continues the Douglas P. Biklen Landscape of Urban Education Lecture Series on Thursday, Oct. 23, with Judith Kafka, associate professor of educational policy and the history of education at Baruch College School of Public Affairs and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Kafka will present “‘Zero Tolerance’ in School Discipline: Where Did It Come from and Where Is It Going?” at 5 p.m. in 500 Hall of Languages.

The lecture is free and open to the public, and CART (Communication Access Real-time Translation) services will be provided.

Judith Kafka

In this talk Professor Kafka will trace the roots of today’s highly punitive zero tolerance school discipline policies back half a century, to efforts on the part of teachers, principals, students, activists and district officials to limit local discretion in the realm of discipline.  She will argue that we must understand where zero tolerance policies came from and why they became so widespread in order to successfully implement new disciplinary practices more appropriate for schools and children. Kafka’s presentation is a continuation of the 2014-15 Landscape of Urban Lecture Series theme, “Surveillance and Segregation in 21st Century Schools: Dismantling the School-to-Prison Pipeline.”

Kafka is the author of, “The History of ‘Zero Tolerance’ in American Public Schooling” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2011), which explores the intersection of race, politics and bureaucracy in the context of school discipline, using the case of the Los Angeles City School District.  She has also written on the history of the small schools movement, principalship and classroom teaching.

Since 2005, the Landscape of Urban Education Lecture Series has been dedicated to the presentation of current ideas and strategies for navigating urban education terrain in the United States. The speakers engaged for this series are well-renowned scholars committed to revitalizing inclusive urban education. The School of Education invites all students, alumni, staff, faculty and friends in the community to experience these presentations.

A generous gift by School of Education Board of Visitors member Jeryl Mitchell ’81, G’83 named the lecture series in honor of retiring Dean Douglas P. Biklen. This will allow the lecture series to continue its mission and expand its audience and national reach for many years to come.