Skip to content
ProPublica Donate
ProPublica Donate
Education

The Price Kids Pay

How Schools and Police Work Together to Punish Students

Illinois law bans schools from fining students. But police routinely issue tickets to children for minor misbehavior at school, burdening families with financial penalties.

Impact of Our Reporting
Caret

The Price Kids Pay

An Illinois School District’s Reliance on Police to Ticket Students Is Discriminatory, Civil Rights Complaint Says

Two civil rights groups are asking the U.S. Department of Education to force Rockford Public Schools, the third-largest district in Illinois, to stop discriminatory discipline involving police.

The Price Kids Pay

Ticketed at School as a Teen, a Young Black Woman Is Suing an Illinois City for Violating Her Civil Rights

It took four years and a jury trial for Amara Harris to beat the ticket that accused her of stealing another girl’s AirPods. Now she’s heading back to court in the hope of stopping schools from using police to discipline students.

The Price Kids Pay

Illinois Officials Will Try a Second Time to Make Good on Pledge to Reform Student Ticketing

Despite legislative setbacks, state leaders and Gov. J.B. Pritzker say they remain committed to stopping schools from continuing to use police to punish students.

The Price Kids Pay

The Federal Government Is Investigating an Illinois School Where Students With Disabilities Were Frequently Arrested

The civil rights inquiry by the Department of Education follows a ProPublica and Chicago Tribune investigation that found the school regularly called police to arrest students.

The Price Kids Pay

New Bill Could End Police Ticketing in Illinois Schools

Students have continued to get costly citations for vaping, fighting and other misbehavior even after state officials directed educators to end the practice.

The Price Kids Pay

State Investigation Reveals Racial Disparities in Student Discipline and Police Involvement

The Illinois civil rights probe of the state’s largest high school district comes after ProPublica and the Chicago Tribune documented thousands of police tickets issued to students for minor infractions.

The Price Kids Pay

Illinois Will Investigate Possible Civil Rights Violations in Student Ticketing

The Illinois attorney general’s office said it is trying to determine if a suburban Chicago school district violated students’ civil rights when police ticketed them for minor misbehavior.

The Price Kids Pay

Illinois Will Stop Helping Cities Collect Some School Ticket Debt From Students

Since a Chicago Tribune-ProPublica investigation, school officials say they’re reevaluating when to involve law enforcement in student discipline.

The Price Kids Pay

Illinois’ Education Chief Urges Schools to Stop Working With Police to Ticket Students for Misbehavior

Responding to a ProPublica-Chicago Tribune investigation, Illinois’ schools superintendent says ticketing students hurts children and their families.

Years After Being Ticketed at School for a Theft She Said Never Happened, Former Student Prevails in Court

ProPublica and Chicago Tribune Win NABJ Salute to Excellence Award

ProPublica Reporting Projects Win Top Awards from the Education Writers Association

ProPublica, Chicago Tribune Win Driehaus Award for “The Price Kids Pay”

ProPublica and the Chicago Tribune Win Worth Bingham Prize

ProPublica and the Chicago Tribune Win IRE Award

A Chicago Suburb Stopped Ticketing Students. But It Won’t Stop Pursuing a 3-Year-Old Case Over Missing AirPods.

The School That Calls the Police on Students Every Other Day

New Data Gives Insight Into Ticketing at Five Suburban Chicago School Districts

A Teen Was Ticketed at School for a Theft She Says Didn’t Happen. Years Later, She’s Still Fighting.

Black Students in Illinois Are Far More Likely to Be Ticketed by Police for School Behavior Than White Students

Do Police Give Students Tickets in Your Illinois School District?