INVEST IN COUNSELORS, SAFER ENVIRONMENT FOR KIDS
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), along with U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and U.S. Representative Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) and U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) on Thursday unveiled legislation that would invest in safe and nurturing school climates that support all students and address the over-policing of our nation’s K-12 schools. The data shows that counselors, social workers, psychologists and other trained professionals actually improve social and educational outcomes for kids in schools—whereas the involvement of police in schools leads to the criminalization of students, particularly students of color and students with disabilities. The Counseling Not Criminalization in Schools Act would prohibit the use of federal funds to increase police presence in schools and instead provide $5 billion in new grant funding…
