In Search of a Safe School: Racialized Perceptions of Security and the School Choice Process

• In Event: 2484 - Section on Sociology of Education Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 11. Issues in School Choice

Abstract

Violence in U.S. elementary and secondary schools occurs at relatively low rates, yet public concern regarding school violence is nevertheless high. In the wake of several high-profile incidents at U.S. schools, the implementation of enhanced security measures, such as the use of metal detectors and the employment of private security guards, has escalated, especially in urban schools attended disproportionately by low-income students of color. Previous research indicates that these measures do little to promote perceived safety among students, but less is known about how these measures are viewed by parents, who, in an era in which school choice is increasingly prioritized, have growing power to select which schools their children will attend. Do heightened security measures affect how safe parents perceive schools to be, and do they influence parental choice behavior? We address these questions using data from an original survey that asked U.S. parents to evaluate hypothetical schools whose security systems and student body racial composition were systematically varied, along with other school characteristics. Results indicate that parents identify schools with intensified security measures as less safe. School racial composition also affects perceptions of safety, as parents find schools with high proportions of black students to be less safe. Furthermore, parents are less likely to express willingness to enroll their children in schools that they perceive to be unsafe, schools with strict security measures, and schools with high black enrollment. We discuss the implications of these findings for educational policy related to school security measures and school choice.

Authors

• Chase Michael Billingham, Wichita State University

• Shelley McDonough Kimelberg, State University of New York-Buffalo

• Sarah Faude, Northeastern University

• Matthew O. Hunt, Northeastern University