"Willing to Take a Chance": When Middle-Class Parents Opt Into Struggling Urban Schools

• In Event: 60.057 - Exploring the Promise and Peril of Urban and Suburban School "Choice" Within and Across Segregated Spaces

Abstract

This paper explores why a small but significant group of middle-class parents send their children to the Yonkers Public Schools (YPS), a full magnet, struggling urban school district in New York State with a marred academic reputation. The following questions are addressed: Why do some middle class parents continue to send their children to YPS schools despite their poor reputation? How do middle class Yonkers parents negotiate the school choice process? What resources do they seek out? What factors most strongly influence school choice decisions? What are the parents’ non-negotiable school requirements? What if any, schooling options do middle class Yonkers parents feel they have?

Scholarly literature is replete with stories of middle class families who fled cities in favor of more homogenous suburbs (Levine, 2001; Massey & Denton, 1993; Wilson, 1996). Clotfelter posited that “...other things being equal, white parents prefer not to send their children to racially mixed schools" (2004, p.78). Recent work on gentrification discusses the reemergence of the white urban middle class, suggesting that Clotfelter’s “White Avoidance” theory may not always apply in some cities (Edelberg & Kurland, 2011; Makris, 2014; Posey- Maddox, 2014; Stillman, 2012) Stillman’s (2012) “Tipping-In” theory, which informs much of this work, identifies four waves of gentry parents in a gentrifying school. This work is distinct because it focuses on middle class parents in a non-gentrifying urban school system.

Methods include direct observation and 19 semi-structured interviews of middle/ upper middle class parents, lasting between 60-90 minutes. Extensive social networks allowed for word-of mouth sampling. The inclusion criteria for participants included that they have at least one child in a YPS school, self-identify as middle-class and meet two of the following three characteristics of middle class Americans as defined by (Gilbert, 1998) 1. Earn at least Yonkers’ median household income ($52,000) 2. At least one adult in the household holds a Bachelor’s Degree 3. Family owns own home or apartment. The 60-90 minute taped interviews were transcribed verbatim, data were organized and coded using an analytical cut-and-paste technique until common themes emerged (Stewart & Shamdasani, 1990). Participants were asked to provide feedback on interpretation and findings (Creswell, 1994).

Consistent with previous work, participants seek the advice of parents with whom they identify when making school choices. Most parents say that diversity is “important” to them and claim that race is not an issue or a very small issue, but that socio-economic status of students in the school does matter. Parents talk about “safety” when looking for a school, but this may actually be a code for race/ethnicity. Contrary to previous work, which depicts middle class parents as well informed and armed with social capital, many respondents report feeling uninformed, un-empowered and choice-less with regard to schools. I identify a significant group of parents, distinct from Stillman’s four categories, whom I call “Steadfast Loyalists.” Many of these parents grew up in Yonkers or the surrounding areas and/or strongly believe in public education and the schools there.

Author

• Cara Kronen, Borough of Manhattan Community College