The Community Context: Do Race and Income Predict Charter School Closure in Cleveland, Ohio?

• In Event: Moscone Center West Roundtable Session 5
  In Roundtable Session: The Effects of Ideology and Market Pressure on School Racial Composition and Culture

Abstract

We conducted a survival analysis examining the relationships among traditional charter school (TCS), closure, racial and socioeconomic community characteristics and TCS age within Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD). Using life tables and binary logistic regression, we examined 844 TCS school years (106 TCS) from the arrival of TCS in 1998 through 2017 to assess the likelihood of closure due to census tract characteristics. Although racial and socioeconomic characteristics were not significant predictors of closure, the life tables indicated that TCS located in predominantly Black neighborhoods are more likely to close than those located in integrated or predominately White areas. Also, TCS in census tracts with second quartile incomes are more likely to close.

Authors

• Elizabeth Anne Gilblom, North Dakota State University

• Hilla Sang, University of Nevada - Las Vegas