This report misrepresents and then criticizes recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Education, a think tank and two independent study groups, each of which recently encouraged particular voluntary efforts to reduce concentrated poverty and achieve racial and socioeconomic integration in schools and housing in Minnesota. In building its…

Almost everyone knows what the term "achievement gap" means, although the key to closing it remains elusive. Despite efforts spanning a decade or more, the disparity in test scores, graduation rates, and other indicators of academic success separating many students of color from many of their white and Asian peers has not been eliminated. In a…

In a recent ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court in "Parents v. Seattle" (Parents Involved, 2007) determined that race cannot be the sole factor in the assignment of children to public schools. The court also identified the conditions which would justify the use of race in assigning children to schools. In this article we (a) provide a historical…

This paper argues that without affirmative action, integration of American higher education would halt and resegregation would accelerate with each generation. The first section of the paper is an annotated bibliography of affirmative action in higher education; it cites books, articles and monographs, and two Web sites. The second section of the…

This article talks about a colorblind plan that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district adopted for student assignment in 2002 that is producing more racially isolated schools, like Selwyn Elementary School, and more schools enrolling high concentrations of poor children. The 2-year-old plan gives parents a choice of schools and provides all…

This paper argues that there is reason to reconsider college admissions policies on three levels because: (1) some admissions measures exhibit racial or economic/social status bias, (2) there is evidence that financial barriers exist, and (3) a belief exists that race-blind admissions policies which include adjustments that offset students' social…

The Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) Neighborhood Schools Initiative (NSI) appears to be making incremental progress towards its twin goals of increasing neighborhood capacity and reducing busing, although results are mixed in this 2002-2003 report, the third year of NSI implementation. Reported findings include: (1) Thirty-nine percent of all…

This paper discusses how trends in school racial desegregation suggest a move back toward segregation. Courts are more willing now to attribute these patterns of racial segregation to demographic changes in residential housing markets rather than to past vestiges of the segregated system as they had done in the past. School officials and community…

Surveyed middle to upper middle class African Americans at three times following a 2000 court decision to desegregate schools in Louisiana's Lafayette Parish. Results indicated that although reactions were initially largely positive, these reactions turned negative after the reality of implementation (e.g., closing of black schools, busing of…

In spite of almost 30 years of busing to achieve racial balance, there continues to be a significant gap between White and African American children in terms of school achievement, and African American students still score below national averages on achievement tests. As the city of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) considers whether to reduce or maintain…

This executive summary presents highlights drawn from the data compiled in "The African American Education Data Book, Volume I: Higher and Adult Education," the first broad national survey of the educational status, performance, progress, and financial support of African Americans in higher education and adult education. The report concludes that…

This report presents data from a 2001 telephone survey of registered voters that examined community attitudes and expectations regarding public education in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg public school system (CMS). Respondents were committed to improving public schools and willing to increase taxes to achieve that goal. They expressed ambivalence…

This book examines a long-running voluntary desegregation program in Boston as a model of the long-range benefits and present-day challenges of integrating America's schools. The book presents interviews with program participants who are now adults and recounts their struggles and achievements. It explores the ways in which the Metropolitan…

Discusses a comprehensive approach to racial inclusion in education, highlighting the inclusion process undertaken at one South African university during the post-apartheid era and examining this experience for possible lessons to be learned by U.S. postsecondary institutions. Suggested strategies for racial inclusion must consider developing…

Drawing on the experience at the University of Texas at Austin, explains how the "10 percent solution" has worked to ensure student diversity since it replaced affirmative action in the admission process. (EV)