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If You Build It, They Will Come: Crossing District Boundaries to Achieve School Diversity in a Segregated County

Thu, April 27, 12:00 to 1:30pm, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Hemisfair Ballroom 3

Abstract

There has been a renewed policy interest in the academic and social benefits that student-level diversity could bring to schools, and society. Our mixed methods study was designed to better understand 1) the racial/ethnic and SES landscape of educational access and opportunity across Essex County, NJ public schools, and 2) parental attitudes about the value and feasibility of school integration policies. The results highlight the extreme levels of segregation and inequality across urban-suburban lines. While many parents in our study value diversity, they feel pressured to provide their children with what they view are the greatest opportunities for social mobility. We suggest that in our increasingly diverse society, integrated schools need to simultaneously achieve private and public goals of education.

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