Racial Preferences and School Choice in an Intradistrict Open-Enrollment Policy Context

• In Event: 26.046 - Magnets, Open Enrollment, and School Closures

Abstract

Intradistrict open enrollment policies are increasingly being implemented as a means of expanding educational opportunities and promoting greater racial integration in urban schools. However, racial segregation continues to endure in many choice-oriented urban school districts, to the extent that schools of choice are often more segregated than their surrounding communities. I investigate the interplay between family, school, and neighborhood racial characteristics as they relate to pre-k and kindergarten school choice patterns in Boston, Massachusetts. This work will complements prior investigations into the racialized nature of school choice processes by testing hypotheses regarding the associations between racial contact in neighborhood contexts and families’ racial preferences for schools for their children.

Author

• William R. Johnston, RAND Corporation