U.S. Department of Education - 2020-21 Civil Rights Data Collection - Student Discipline and School Climate in U.S. Public Schools - November 2023

Oct 15, 2026

The 2020-21 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) is a mandatory survey of public school districts and schools serving students from preschool through grade 12 across the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, covering 17,821 districts and 97,575 schools. It measures student access to courses, programs, internet and devices, staffing, and resources, alongside school climate indicators such as discipline, restraint and seclusion, harassment or bullying, and offenses affecting education opportunity. This report highlights discipline and school climate data submitted for the 2020-21 school year, with cautions that pandemic effects and methodological differences may affect comparisons.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages24

Reading Time1 h 0 min

AccessFree to download

About this Report

Who’s in the 2020-21 CRDC?

Student enrollment and student served populations

Number of school districts

About the CRDC

Purpose and data use

Legal authorities and enforcement

NEW DATA RELEASE 2023 2020-21 Civil Rights Data Collection Student Discipline and School Climate in U.S. Public Schools U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights November 2023 About this Report The 2020-21 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) is a mandatory survey of all public school districts and schools serving students in preschool through grade 12 in the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and therefore includes data from 17,821 public school districts and 97,575 public schools.1 The CRDC measures student access to courses, programs, Internet and devices, instructional and other staff, and resources – as well as school climate factors such as student discipline, use of restraint and seclusion, harassment or bullying, and offenses occurring at schools – that impact education opportunity for students. This report highlights student discipline and school climate data public school districts submitted to the U. S. Department of Education’s (ED) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for the 2020-21 school year.2 The calculated counts and percentages in this report may differ from those reported by other offices within ED due to differences in methodology, data sources, and survey population (or the universe of schools and school districts that submit data) .3 OCR cautions readers and data users to consider the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on students and on education conditions when comparing the 2020-21 CRDC to CRDCs from previous years. What’s Inside? Who’s in the 2020-21 CRDC .................................................................................. 3 About the CRDC ........................................................................................................ 4 Student Discipline .................................................................................................... 5 Harassment or Bullying ........................................................................................... 14 Offenses ........................................................................................................................ 20 Analytical Notes ......................................................................................................... 22 Endnotes ....................................................................................................................... 22 Availability of Alternate Formats......................................................................... 24 Notice to Limited-English-Proficient Persons ................................................ 24 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION | 2020-21 CIVIL RIGHTS DATA COLLECTION | [https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/](https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/ 2)[ 2](https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/ 2) Who’s in the 2020-21 CRDC? | Total student enrollment in | Total number of | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | public preschool through grade 12 | preschool children | 51% | 49% | | | | BOYS | GIRLS | | 49.2 | 1.2 | | | | MILLION4 | MILLION | | | Student enrollment by race/ethnicity5 Hispanic or Latino of any race6 American Indian or Alaska Native Asian Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander Black or African American White Two or more races | Enrollment of
English learner students7 | Enrollment of students with disabilities | | Students served under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (504 only):9 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | Total students with disabilities: | Students served under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA):8 | | | 11% | 17% | 14% | 3% | Number of school districts 17,821 Percent of schools by type of instruction provided during the coronavirus pandemic Number of schools 97,575 Hybrid of in-person and virtual instruction during the coronavirus pandemic In-person instruction only because of the coronavirus pandemic Virtual instruction only because of the coronavirus pandemic No i

FAQs

What is the 2020-21 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC)?

The CRDC is a mandatory survey of public school districts and schools serving preschool through grade 12. It gathers data related to equal educational opportunity obligations and school climate factors.

What kinds of topics does the CRDC measure?

It measures student access to courses, programs, internet and devices, instructional staff, and resources. It also covers school climate factors including student discipline, restraint and seclusion, harassment or bullying, and offenses occurring at schools.

Why does OCR caution comparisons with CRDCs from previous years?

Calculated counts and percentages may differ due to methodology, data sources, and the survey population. OCR also cautions that the coronavirus pandemic may have affected students and education conditions during 2020-21.

Oct 15, 2026

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