Democrats offer student-focused legislation in 2022

Brown: ‘It’s time the Missouri legislature put students first.’

Rep. Paula Brown (MHDC)

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – House Democrats announced an education agenda on Friday aimed at ensuring students have a healthy school environment, establishing disciplinary rules that are fair without being punitive and improving access to an affordable college education.

“Our state has an obligation to serve children across the state by providing them with a quality education, and we believe these bills help Missouri achieve that goal,” said state Rep. Paula Brown, the ranking minority member of the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee. “It’s time the Missouri legislature put students first, instead of stunting their growth by depriving them of much-needed resources and censoring their learning materials.”

Brown, D-Hazelwood, has filed House Bill 1467, which would revise statewide student assessment to put greater focus on students, and House Bill 2610 titled the “Get the Lead Out of School Drinking Water Act,” an undertaking to ensure elementary school students — especially in disadvantaged school districts — have access to clean, healthy drinking water in their schools.

State Rep. Ian Mackey, D-St. Louis, who serves alongside Brown on that committee, included several bills to limit punishments against elementary and secondary school students. HB 1899 would place greater regulations on student suspension, HB 1938 would prohibit shaming students for failure to pay lunch debt or inability to pay for a school lunch, and HB 1937 would ban corporal punishment in Missouri public schools.

“Decades of research have found that punishments like suspensions, public shaming and especially corporal punishment do far more harm than good to students, and they are often wielded disproportionately against students of color,” Mackey said. “If we really want to help students in our schools, then we can start by passing legislation that ends these practices.”

State Rep. Kevin Windham, D-Hillsdale, and State Rep. Ingrid Burnett, D-Kansas City, offered bills to aid students at Missouri’s higher education institutions. Windham’s HB 1789 would prohibit colleges and universities from refusing to provide transcripts to students with debts or unpaid tuition, and HB 1790 is designed to bring greater equity to Missouri’s “A+ Schools Program.”

“Currently, students only receive funds from the A+ scholarship — which is marketed as free college — after they receive federal, non-loan funds like the Pell Grant. This means many low-income students who qualify for A+ dollars and most need those funds do not see a cent and may still need to take out student loans,” Windham said. “My legislation would fix this loophole and ensure that students across the state who have earned this award receive what we owe them.”

Finally, Burnett’s HB 2613 would prohibit institutions of higher learning from denying admittance to Missouri students based on their immigration status.

“Students who reside in this state, no matter their background, deserve access to quality advanced learning beyond the high school level, if that’s the path they choose to pursue,” Burnett said. “When we put barriers in the way of our youth, we only hurt our future.”