School Choice and the Latina/o Community: Increased Opportunity/Exclusion in Mecklenburg County

• In Event: Hilton Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: Local Contexts, Conditions, and Concerns in School Choice

Abstract

Although current trends in educational reform favor market-based strategies such as increased schooling options, research is mixed in detailing the equitable outcomes of such policies. Largely missing from the literature are the perspectives of Latino families in how they access and experience the process of school choice. This study examines the ways in which Latinos navigate this process in Mecklenburg County, providing a nuanced examination of the influences of factors such as nativity, socioeconomic status, educational background, generation status, and family structure, on families’ decisions. Recognizing that school choice policies will only continue to proliferate, this research asserts that more intentional consideration of this rising population of students is necessary to create equitable educational opportunities and outcomes in public education.

Author

• Laura Katherine Handler, University of North Carolina - Charlotte