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NCSD members Courtney Everts Mykytyn and Sarah Camiscoli present "Growing the Integration Movement Through Youth and Parent Engagement" at the Magnet Schools of America 2017 National Conference. IntegrateNYC4Me and IntegratedSchools.org are both organizations working with parents and students to expand awareness of and support for integration.
See an example of such student-led grassroots work here.
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New York State Education Department Considers School Diversity Strategies Under the Every Student Succeeds Act
As
reported by Monica Disare in Chalkbeat NY, education officials in the New York State Education Department discussed using the Every Student Succeeds Act to encourage racial and socioeconomic integration in schools at the Board of Regents meeting on April 4th.
According to the
proposed "High Concept Idea," NY State Education Department officials are considering the use of integration measures as a factor in evaluating school performance, as well as proposing integration strategies as evidence-based Title I interventions to improve students' academic outcomes. This usage of state ESSA plans to fight segregation and support integration was previously
recommended by the NCSD, and we are excited to see this work being carried forward in New York.
NCSD member organization New York Appleseed, which advocates for integrated schools in New York, has generated a letter of support for the proposed high concept idea, which can be read
here.
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School Choice, School Vouchers, and Integration in the News
Following the
confirmation of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education
the topic of school choice, and school vouchers in particular,
has received increased public scrutiny. News media outlets, in turn, have stepped-up reporting on issues of school choice, vouchers, and integration.
T
he selected pieces below reflect an evolving discussion in the education and civil rights communities regarding the
growing
role of choice in student assignment
,
what that means for the health of our public education system, and our democratic society as a whole.
- The New Champions of School Integration, by Richard Kahlenberg, The Atlantic, April 6, 2017
- Special Ed School Vouchers May Come With Hidden Costs, by Dana Goldstein, The New York Times, April 11, 2017
- 3 Ways to Think About School Choice Through the Lens of Equity and Diversity, by Valerie Braimah, The 74, April 17, 2917
- What Betsy DeVos's Emphasis on 'Choice' Means for School Segregation, by Michelle Chen, The Nation, April 19, 2017
- The Privilege of School Choice, by Patrick Wall, The Atlantic, April 25, 2017
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The Civil Rights Community Responds to Candice Jackson Appointment
The Leadership Coalition for Civil Rights, a coalition of more than 200 national organizations convened to promote and protect the civil and human rights of all persons in the United States, recently sent a letters to Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, and Senators Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray of the Health, Labor, Pensions and Education committee, expressing concern about the Department's commitment to protecting the civil rights of all students. The letter was prompted by the appointment of Candice Jackson as the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of Civil Rights and Acting Assistant Secretary. Jackson's past statements cast doubt on whether she will actively and faithfully pursue investigations in response to allegations of unfair treatment by women and minority students.
Given the critical roles that the Department of Eduaction and the Office of Civil Rights play in ensuring students are protected from discrimination, the letter urges Secretary DeVos and the Trump administration to nominate an individual for the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights role who believes every student has a right to learn, be treated with dignity, and be protected from discrimination.
The letter to Secretary DeVos can be found here, and the letter to Senators Alexander and Murray can be found here.
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NCSD Member Updates
- On March 30, The Leadership Conference for Civil Rights hosted a webinar with NCSD member MALDEF alongside the National Immigration Law Center, AFT, and NEA regarding the Educational Rights of Immigrant Children (see a recording of the webinar here). The webinar was such a success the groups will host a second, Spanish language webinar on the same topic on May 25 at 7:00pm. Registration for the Spanish language webinar available here.
- Erica Frankenberg, Co-director of the Center for Education and Civil Rights, published a new paper in April, titled "Assessing Segregation Under a New Generation of Controlled Choice Policies." In this paper Frankenberg examines the impact of post-Parents Involved school choice systems on school integration, finding that the new generalized, race-conscious student assignment programs in districts like Jefferson County, KY, are largely able to maintain integrated schools, with some increases in racial segregation.
- NCSD Research Advisory Panel member Sean Reardon, Professor of Poverty and Inequality in Education at Stanford University, has been named as a 2017 Andrew Carnegie Fellow for his research into educational opportunity and achievement gaps in America.
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Furthering Diversity in K-12 Schools through Student Assignment
Dates: June 1, 2017
Location: Washington, DC
Main contact: Erica Frankenberg (euf10@psu.edu) or Andrew Pendola (amp450@psu.edu)
On June 1, the Center for Education and Civil Rights at Penn State University, will host an event at Georgetown Law School in Washington, D.C., where s
chool leaders will work alongside one another, advocates, and researchers on learning more about various aspects of designing, implementing, and sustaining student assignment plans that promote racial and socioeconomic diversity. This meeting will include new research about what diversity efforts districts are undertaking and what is known about the effectiveness of these models. Participants will also learn from one another about local successes and challenges regarding the design of diversity plans as well as how to effectively communicate about the plan with local communities. Expected outcomes are:
- Establishing on-going support networks for districts and charter schools;
- Providing school leaders with research to assist them wherever they are in the process of considering or implementing racial and socioeconomic diversity efforts; and
- Learning about other resources that can assist with integration efforts.
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Book Tour: The Color of Law
Richard Rothstein's forthcoming book, The Color of Law, has been hailed as powerful historical work that confronts the reality of how the American government worked in the 20th century to create and maintain the residential racial segregation that plagues our country today.
Rothstein will be holding a series of lectures around the country in the coming months to discuss this important, revealing work. See details below.
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IntegrateUS 2017 Summer Institute: Building a National Movement of Youth Leaders for Integration
Dates: August 2-5
Location: New York City, NY
Main contact: Sarah Camiscoli, sarah@integratenyc4me.com
IntegrateNYC4me is a youth-led organization that brings young people from segregated schools together to investigate the impact of segregation on their lives and design solutions for school integration that will impact the 1.1 million students in the NYC DOE. IntegrateNYC4me will be hosting the "IntegrateUS 2017 Summer Institute: Building a National Movement of Youth Leaders for Integration." The institute will join, train, and catalyze youth leaders and their adult allies to build their own chapters of Integrate in their communities and to realize the kind of transformation our nation's students know to be possible and feel to be necessary. If you are interested in joining the summer institute or learning more about how you and your allies can bring the magic and transformation of youth-led integration to your community, please contact: sarah@integratenyc4me.com.
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Upcoming Events of Interest
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National Coalition on School Diversity
c/o Poverty and Race Research Action Council
Website: school-diversity.org
Email: school-diversity@prrac.org
Mailing Address: 1200 18th St. NW #200 Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-544-5066
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