The CBS Local News Innovation Lab has partnered with CBS-owned stations nationwide to produce a data-driven investigation about elementary school children being arrested in school. Stephen Stock, CBS Stations investigative correspondent, delivers reports on the topic in CBS-owned stations’ newscasts beginning November 15. Stock will report on why the arrests are happening, the impact on children, which students are most affected, and solutions that are being explored.
“The Innovation Lab’s analysis of U.S. Department of Education data has found hundreds of students across the country have been handcuffed at school for relatively minor disciplinary actions, including a disproportionate number of Black children and children with disabilities,” according to CBS News and Stations.
CBS News and Stations announced plans for the Innovation Lab, based in Dallas-Fort Worth, in January. The Innovation Lab team’s analysis found more than 700 children (fifth grade and younger) were arrested in U.S. elementary schools during the 2017-2018 school year alone. Children with documented disabilities were found to be four times more likely to be arrested at school, according to the analysis of the 2017-18 U.S. Department of Education data. Black students made up nearly half of all arrests during the 2017-18 school year even though they accounted for just 15% of the student population in those schools.
Stock showed Assistant Secretary for the Department of Education Office of Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon video of a seven-year-old autistic boy being arrested. “There's very little that I saw in that video that is acceptable, and there's very little on that video that is consistent with federal civil rights obligations,” Lhamon said.
Following Stock’s report, CBS-owned stations in 14 markets will follow up this week with localized reporting that identifies specific schools where students have been arrested in their communities. The project has the title “Handcuffs in Hallways.”
“This latest collaboration between the CBS Local News Innovation Lab and our stations across the country illustrates the breadth and depth of our reporting capabilities as part of our unified CBS News and Stations organization and shines a light on disturbing local and national events,” said Adrienne Roark, president, CBS Stations. “The Innovation Lab is a tremendous resource for our stations and we look forward to continue to report data-driven stories in a way that super serves our audiences and differentiates CBS Stations from its competitors.”
The Innovation Lab began working on this investigation after seeing WBBM Chicago investigative reporter Dave Savini and his colleagues report on arrests at schools in the Chicago area.
“We prioritize Solutions Journalism in projects like this, aiming to generate conversation, engagement and potential action in our communities,” said Chad Cross, VP, content development, CBS Stations. “On this issue, we believe it’s important for our communities to see what’s happening in Georgia. In 2018, the state changed its approach, training their school resource officers to help students reach graduation, rather than making arrests. We discovered this by attending a conference of school resource officers this summer, and we knew it needed to be a primary part of the story.” ■
