Historic and Contemporary Patterns in New York City Public and Private School Segregation

• In Event: Schooling Past, Present, and Future: Segregation, School Choice, and Other Issues of Equity

Abstract

New York City’s schools are among the most segregated in the nation. However, the extant literature has generally ignored NYC’s private schools, which serve over one-fifth of NYC students. In this paper, we compare segregation within NYC’s private and public sectors and examine the extent to which these relationships have changed over the past several decades. We find that the private sector disproportionately serves white students, and this imbalance has grown over time. Additionally, segregation among private schools far exceeds that found among public schools while further exacerbating overall segregation. However, these high levels of segregation, both overall and within sectors, have remained stable over time, suggesting that shifting private sector racial/ethnic demographics have not influenced overall segregation.

Authors

• Douglas Ready, Teachers College, Columbia University
  Presenting Author

• Rebecca Shmoys, Teachers College, Columbia University
  Presenting Author