Schoolhouse Burning
- 320 pages
- 12 hours of reading
A stirring and passionate defense of the central importance of public education to American democracy, vividly illustrating how the forces of reaction are chipping away at a constitutional right.
Derek W. Black Books
Derek W. Black is a law professor and a leading national expert on education law and policy, focusing on educational equality for disadvantaged students and the privatization of public education. His commentary and essays regularly appear in major American media, addressing the issues of dwindling public school resources and expanding inequality. His scholarly research, published in top legal journals, has been cited multiple times by federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Ending Zero Tolerance
- 256 pages
- 9 hours of reading
Suspension and expulsion rates have doubled over the past three decades as zero tolerance policies have become the normal response to a host of minor infractions that extend well beyond just drugs and weapons. Students from all demographic groups have suffered, but minority and special needs students have suffered the most. Derek Black weaves stories about individual students, lessons from social science, and the outcomes of courts cases to unearth an irrational system of punishment. While schools and legislatures have proven unable and unwilling to amend their failing policies, Ending Zero Tolerance argues for constitutional protections to check abuses in school discipline and lays out theories by which courts should re-engage to enforce students' rights and support broader reforms.
From the former heir-apparent to white nationalism, an astonishing account of a childhood built on fear, of breaking from his community, and of speaking out in the face of hate