Yet, another potential delay in redistricting RUSD – yesterday the Supreme Court heard arguments regarding the integration policies of our public schools. The justices will consider whether race can still be a factor in public school placement.
Their decision, which is expected next spring, will have far-reaching ramifications for our nations’ schools. Currently, RUSD has a voluntary desegregation plan and is seeking to change/update this plan. Will we now have to wait (for the much needed “normal” redistricting) until the high court of the land hands down their decision? Is it unconstitutional to send an inner-city child to a western suburb like Sturtevant to attend school?
And will it change the current practice of choosing who goes to the district’s magnet schools? Currently, there are at least 2 alternative high schools (Walden and The REAL School) which base their decisions on accepting students partly on the basis of the students’ ethnicity.
I value diversity; I think that there is intrinsic value in having a diverse classroom. But it should also be noted that FORCED busing at the elementary level does little, if anything positive for our district. It disenfranchises parents and adds additional costs in busing to an already cash-strapped district. Why not encourage more parents to attend a non-neighborhood school by making every school a CHOICE school? If our magnet schools are so popular (and they are!), why not expand these programs? Busing will still be an issue, but I envision making busing available for economically-disadvantaged families who DECIDE to send their child to a school across town.
It should be noted that by nature of where our middle and high schools are geographically located; our district would NEVER be segregated. The elementary schools might be racially “out of balance” for a time, but overall the district would reflect the diverse population of eastern Racine County. We need to encourage diversity, not force it.
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2 comments:
Is this true? (I know, it was on the Internet, so it must be...)
>>Currently, there are at least 2 alternative high schools (Walden and The REAL School) which base their decisions on accepting students partly on the basis of the students’ ethnicity.<<
I ask only because I didn't think they could take that into account at all, under current law. I'd love an educated response.
I hope this is an educated response:
I am curious to what current law you are referring to, from what I understand Unified was not forced to integrate their schools – Unified voluntarily desegregated the district back in the 70’s. The desegregation policy states that “no school shall have a minority population of 10% below or 15% above the districts percentage of minority students enrolled at each school level” (Source 9-18-06 Journal Times).
From examining the DPI enrollment data for the districts schools’ it is clear that Walden and The REAL School (along with numerous elementary) schools do not meet the district’s (albeit voluntary) desegregation policy. Walden’s student population for the 2005-06 school year was 78.2% white and The REAL School was 71.8% for the same time frame (Source DPI). Considering that white students make up approximately 53% of RUSD’s overall student population (meaning 47% minority), it is apparent to all that these “choice” schools are not falling within the district’s voluntary desegregation policy.
Unlike other schools, these two schools have a different enrollment process. You cannot just attend these schools, like the other 3 comprehensive high schools. A student needs to be “selected” - so to try to bring these schools more in line with the district’s current desegregation policy, there has been an increased effort to enroll more minority children at these schools. Race and ethnicity do play a part in deciding who now attends these schools. I know this not because I read it in the Journal Times– I know this because I attend RUSD meetings and pay attention. I also know this to be true because I know families who have been turned away from these schools because of the color of their skin. If you still do not believe me, I would suggest that you either contact Central Office or the administration offices at any of these schools.
I’m not suggesting that selecting minority children over white children is necessarily a bad practice; in fact I think every effort should be made to encourage black children to apply at these schools. I am only wondering how any future Supreme Court decisions will affect this enrollment process to charter and magnet schools like those in our district.
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