Opinion: Linda Brown and the Unfinished Work of School Integration
by Elise C. Boddie and Dennis D. Parker
March 30, 2018
New York Times
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Opinion: Linda Brown and the Unfinished Work of School Integration The government’s continuing funding resolution for FY 2018 is set to run out on March 23rd. The House of Representatives may vote this week on a funding bill for the rest of FY 2018. This will likely be our last chance to strike the harmful anti-integration rider this fiscal year. The Senate is expected to vote next week on the bill, so the time for action is NOW! More information here. As school districts push for integration, decades-old federal rule could thwart them “We shouldn’t have this,” said Philip Tegeler, a member of the National Coalition on School Diversity, which is leading the charge to remove the restriction. He added that the provision stemmed from mandatory desegregation busing of an earlier era: “It’s clearly an anachronism that doesn’t really fit any more with what states and districts are doing voluntarily.” In a growing push to promote school integration, New York announces new round of grants Mike Hilton, who reviewed grant applications for the initial pilot, said the moves make New York State unique. “New York State is special in that there is no court order saying that the state has to pay attention to diversity or pursue these kinds of remedies,” said Hilton, who works on education policy for the Poverty & Race Research Action Council, and the National Coalition on School Diversity. “This is New York State leading the way.” How To Cultivate An Inclusive Environment To Help Students Of Color Thrive SEPTEMBER 6, 2017 Washington, DC – Today the National Coalition on School Diversity (NCSD) released the research brief, “How to Support the Social-Emotional Well-Being of Students of Color.” The brief includes survey results and recommendations from districts with interdistrict integration programs that are focused on the dual goals of increasing access to educational opportunity and promoting integration. Read the full press release here (as posted by the Education Writers Association). FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 3/30/17 CONTACT Washington, DC – The National Coalition on School Diversity (NCSD) and our partners are disappointed by Secretary of the Department of Education (DOE) Betsy DeVos’ decision to eliminate funding for the Opening Doors, Expanding Opportunities (ODEO) grant program – denying parents and students an opportunity to reach a community consensus on the best methods of socioeconomic integration in isolated, struggling schools. As reported by Emma Brown in the Washington Post, an anonymous official from the DOE stated that the program was cancelled because “it would not be a wise use of tax dollars, in part because the money was to be used for planning, not implementation.” This statement is both factually inaccurate and also indicates a misunderstanding of the barriers to school integration – and an injustice to communities interested in coming together to develop new education models for their students. The intention of the ODEO grant was not only to fund an extended period of public engagement and consultation, but allow applicants with pre-existing integration efforts to implement pre-implementation activities including pilot activities in target schools. Intensive community education and input to the development of socioeconomic integration plans is one of the biggest hurdles school integration efforts face. After the Supreme Court’s 2007 Parents Involved in Community Schools decision, parents and school officials in Louisville, KY, came together to develop a new integration plan. This inclusive community effort resulted in higher educational outcomes for low-income students and African-American students.[i] The Century Foundation Report, Louisville, Kentucky: A Reflection on School Integration, recognized that the city’s “adoption of stronger socioeconomic measures, as well as its regional approach to desegregation, careful timing, and continued emphasis on school quality represent critical lessons that could be adopted by other regions and school districts willing to put in the work.” In her speech at the Magnet Schools of America Conference earlier this year, Secretary DeVos stated, “I think experiencing and being a part of a diverse environment is really critical to the development of any young person.”[ii] But when provided with an opportunity to take a step towards helping districts create diverse environments, Secretary DeVos failed to support effective diversity efforts. Successful integration programs have shown that community consensus takes time to build and is imperative to the improvement of schools and increased academic achievement for all students regardless of socioeconomic status. ODEO would have provided 20 school districts an opportunity to take the first steps towards successful integration efforts. NCSD Partner Quotes: “If the Trump Administration is seriously committed to a full range of choice, the fact is that most choice programs usually stratify students by race and that this small program to help school districts create voluntary programs to support integrated schools, which have very well documented benefits and many families desire, and should be part of true choice.” – Gary Orfield, Co-Director, Civil Rights Project, University of California, Los Angeles “Secretary DeVos continues the sins of school segregation by canceling funds for the Opening Doors grants to promote the proven benefits of school diversity for many schoolchildren of color.” – John Brittain, Professor at University of Washington D.C. Law School and specialist in educational equity “This is indicative of an Administration that claims to care about the enduring legacy of Brown v. Board, but whose actions instead show a blatant disregard and lack of will to do the work. When I was at the Department helping to craft this grant, we took the necessary time and energy to meet with districts who wanted and needed federal support to pursue diversity strategies in their schools as part of their effort to close the achievement gap and uplift ALL students. The Opening Doors, Expanding Opportunities Grant was a culmination of this deliberative process – and was requested by districts. If Secretary DeVos claims to care about local control, then her actions show otherwise.” – Tanya Clay House, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary DOE Senior Consultant, Schott Foundation for Public Education About NCSD: The National Coalition on School Diversity (NCSD) is a network of national civil rights organizations, university-based research centers, and state and local coalitions working to expand support for government policies that promote school diversity and reduce racial and economic isolation in elementary and secondary schools. We also support the work of state and local school diversity practitioners. Our work is informed by an advisory panel of scholars and academic researchers whose work relates to issues of equity, diversity, and desegregation/integration. [i] https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/03/the-city-that-believed-in-desegregation/388532/ [ii] https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2017/03/how-betsy-devos-could-end-the-school-integration-comeback/520113/ Trump’s Education Department nixes Obama-era grant program for school diversity NCSD members Philip Tegeler and Tanya Clay House quoted: “’This was the secretary’s first opportunity to show her commitment to school diversity, and she failed to come through,’ said Philip Tegeler of the Poverty and Race Research Action Council, one of nearly two dozen scholars and advocates who signed a letter to DeVos earlier this month, urging her to move forward with the program.” Tanya Clay House, a former Education Department official who played a key role in designing the grant program, said the decision to do away with the program feels like a ‘slap in the face.’ The money is there, she said. ‘Why not allow the districts to use it?'” How Betsy DeVos Could End the School-Integration Comeback “That’s going to be a real test of her commitment to school integration,” said Philip Tegeler, the executive director of the Poverty and Race Research Action Council. Recently, Tegeler’s group and other members of the National Coalition on School Diversity sent DeVos a letter urging her to award the grants. An education department spokesman said in an email Friday: “The Department has no comment at this time.” Opinion: Sheff Case: Big Gains, No Time To Let Down “Dennis Parker is director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Racial Justice Project. Deuel Ross is an assistant counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Martha Stone is executive director of the Center for Children’s Advocacy in Hartford. They are attorneys for the plaintiffs in the Sheff vs. O’Neill school desegregation case.” ACLU and NAACP Legal Defense Fund are part of NCSD’s founding membership. Trump’s America could leave black and brown children behind, but here are ways to help NCSD is recognized as one of several outlets and resources for people looking to respond to troubling rhetoric and recent moves by the Trump Administration, including the selection of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education. “If policy is more your flavor, lobbying your state representatives about their education budget is key. States like North Carolina have damaged the quality of public education, not only by slashing budgets, but by de-incentivizing teachers, refusing to pay them higher wages for advanced degrees, and striking legal safeguards that protect them from being fired for unfair or illegal reasons. You can also donate to the National Coalition for School Diversity, a network of civil rights orgs, university research centers, and state and local coalitions that champions diversity and socio-economic equity our nation’s schools.”
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