Brevard Public Schools student discipline audit report released

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Brevard Public Schools officials have released a report laying out the findings from a recently completed independent audit of their student discipline system.

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The report includes a list of recommendations for addressing ongoing district concerns with regard to student behavior and discipline.

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The audit analyzes compliance with certain board policies and even gauges teachers and staff on how comfortable they are implementing those policies.

According to the audit, behavior incidents reported by the district have actually decreased since their peak in the 2018-2019 school year. However, discipline remains a concern for teachers and staff.

Brevard Public Schools Acting Superintendent Sue Hann says the audit presents an opportunity for them to adapt.

“Things are changing in the education landscape,” Hann said.

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The audit references a number of external factors for behavioral problems, including the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on education, mental health, class size, staff turnover, and vacancies, which have been particularly pronounced in Brevard County.

“Highest amount of teacher turnover arguably in Brevard County History in the last three decades, because we have one of the oldest experience levels,” Brevard Public School Board Chair Matt Susin said. “So our people that are retiring from being a part of the space launch back in the 60s and 70s are now retiring out…then you also have the competitiveness of all of the other companies inside of our county.”

The district has already taken steps to increase training of discipline reporting and tracking. BPS has also reinstituted its discipline committee, and is reviewing alternative learning centers with the goal of decreasing the number of students there.

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“We all own a part of this,” Susin said. “So parents, students, teachers, administrators, everybody…us as a school board especially,...it’s up to all of us to come together on it.”

The audit is now public but still needs to be presented to the full school board, at which point they will decide which recommendations to implement and how.

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