Desegregation and the End of American Educational Exceptionalism: New Opportunity or Same Old Story?

• In Event: School Boards in the Storm: Local Governance and Controversy

Abstract

Amidst the increased involvement of general-purpose government actors (e.g., mayors) in education policymaking, desegregation policies have remained mostly in the hands of school districts. Yet, a recent desegregation effort in Howard County, Maryland, suggests that these actors may be re-entering the desegregation policymaking arena, potentially reshaping opportunities to advance desegregation policies. This paper explores how and to what end one group of general-purpose government actors—county councilmembers—participated in Howard County’s efforts to desegregate by redistricting school attendance boundaries. Preliminary findings suggest that councilmembers used their access to information and legislative power in an attempt to pressure the school board to desegregate, but made it harder for them to do so by taking actions that incited community resistance.

Author

• Kayla Bill, University of Maryland
  Presenting Author