This report catalogues the growth of the modern mixed-race population in the United States and highlights the many complications this population presents for the future of civil rights law and policy. What is most distinctive of today's mixed-race individuals is their assertion of a mixed-race identity which they claim embodies a different…

The call for more expansive access to bilingual education is grounded in a comprehensive synthesis of evidence on the benefits of bilingual education, bilingualism, and biliteracy for students and the larger social fabric. Many studies find that access to bilingual education programs has a medium to large positive impact on students' academic…

Among the most critical pre-pandemic inequities that have not received sufficient attention is the fact that many districts are not meeting their legal and moral obligation to educate students with disabilities, which must include providing needed mental health services, behavioral supports and educationally sound interventions by well qualified…

In November of 1996, California voted and approved Proposition 209 (also known as the California Civil Rights Initiative) by a tally of 54.55% to 45.45%. It is unknown how many of those voters voted for the initiative because the name implied that it was pro-civil rights. Nonetheless, California became the first state to ban the practice of…

This is the executive summary for the report, "Is California Doing Enough to Close the School Discipline Gap?" In California, a combination of statewide and local efforts has been implemented to reduce the use of punitive suspensions in public K-12 schools. Current state data trends reflect these efforts, showing that far fewer students…

The purpose of this manual is to support school districts and schools in developing diverse and equitable magnet programs. It is intended to help stakeholders during the planning phases of developing new magnet schools or during the revision or expansion of existing magnet schools. The manual focuses on: (1) Why districts should consider…

This manual was written to help guide education stakeholders--including parents, students, school board members, community activists, administrators, policymakers and attorneys--in their efforts to promote racial diversity and avoid racial isolation in suburban school systems. Critical information on the current legal, political and policy issues…

The Civil Rights Project (CRP) was founded, in part, to bring rigorous social science inquiry to bear on the most pressing civil rights issues. On-going trends involving public school segregation have been a primary focus of the CRP's research, and the expanding policy emphasis on school choice prompted analysis of the much smaller--but…

This report describes the academic achievement trends of students in Denver's elementary schools from 1994 to 2000. It begins with a brief introduction to the original 1973 Keyes decision and the path to its conclusion in 1995. It then presents a chronology of the standardized measures of academic achievement used by the Denver Public Schools and…

Over the past two years, the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) has made such extensive compromises in implementing the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB)that the law's legitimacy is in serious question. In response to growing state and local opposition to the law, political and professional criticisms of its requirements, and the…

This policy brief provides information for practitioners and policymakers on how the NCLB requirements affect LEP students and their schools and explores some of the unintended consequences of the legislation. Although both Title I and Title III of NCLB apply to LEP students, this brief focuses on the accountability provisions outlined in Title I,…

People of color make up a vital and growing part of Metro Boston's workforce, yet they face substantial challenges in obtaining employment (especially in faster-growing and higher-paying sectors), in reaching locations of rapid job growth, and in earning a livable income. Latinos and blacks face the greatest hurdles, yet certain Asian populations…

This report takes a look at the issues concerning racial segregation and educational outcomes in Metropolitan Boston. Despite the fact that metro Boston is overwhelmingly white, its public schools are highly segregated by race and language. Segregated minority schools in metro Boston are profoundly unequal, with high poverty levels, with lower…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) is the most significant and controversial change in federal education policy since the federal government assumed a major role in American education almost four decades ago. In many ways, it is the most startling departure in federal educational policy in American history. It is hard to imagine that…