Gateway to Integration or Segregation? Racial Change in Suburban Public Schools

• In Event: Spatial Stratification. Nefarious Intent: The Impact of Neighborhood Racial Change on Enrollment and Student Assignment

Abstract

Suburbs across the US are experiencing demographic shifts with consequences for suburban schools. While scholars have expressed concern of rising segregation among suburban public schools, we extend this work by examining changes in racial/ethnic school segregation across a typology of suburban municipalities in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metropolitan area between 2007 and 2018. Our findings are mixed- contingent on the measure of segregation employed. We find that blacks-white and Hispanics-white segregation in inner-ring suburbs is rising, but is at least in part driven by shifting demographics. The results suggest intra-suburban variation in segregation, highlighting the connection between race and neighborhood change.

Authors

• Kfir Mordechay, Pepperdine University

• Fabian Terbeck