Actually, Charter Schools Can Work Against Segregation

Aug 21, 2018 12:00:00 AM

by Sonia Park

Reactions to public charter schools seem to exist on an either/or dichotomy characterized by extremes. They are either the only answer to our country’s educational problems or the very reason why our children, and entire communities, are doomed to chronic failure. The reality is far more nuanced—a nuance lost in a recent New York Times op-ed by Los Angeles writer Erin Aubry Kaplan. Kaplan argues: “Today Los Angeles and California as a whole have abandoned integration as the chief mechanism of school reform and embraced charter schools instead.” But [pullquote position="right"]school integration initiatives did not stall because of charter schools.[/pullquote] School integration and busing programs peaked in the 1980s during the Reagan era, nearly a decade before the first charter school opened in 1992. Charter schools made up only a tiny fraction of the school-age population until about 15 years ago, and the majority of the population growth has occurred in the last decade. School integration efforts, on the other hand, ended well before the first charter schools arrived. And that was mostly due to overwhelming political pushback and White flight. In fact, Kaplan is correct that schools are indeed more segregated now than in recent memory, but this is a result of housing and school district policies and practices, among other things.

Charters as a Lever for Integration

Public charter schools, in contrast, can and do serve as powerful mechanisms for school integration. The truth is that many charter schools across the country, especially those in the Diverse Charter School Coalition, work hand-in-hand with district partners to help combat the very challenging realities of school segregation. Charter schools are working collectively to be part of the solution. Too often, various legal and political challenges to desegregation stop traditional district schools from integrating their student bodies. Now, intentionally diverse charter schools are using the flexibility of chartering to move beyond these restrictions. https://educationpost.org/diverse-by-design-these-charter-schools-show-what-integration-looks-like-and-why-it-matters-for-kids/ What’s more, it’s working. There are over 50,000 students attending over 100 charter schools across the United States that are intentionally diverse. These integrated schools not only benefit students’ academic and social emotional development, they also benefit entire communities, uniting people across lines of difference. Knowing the power of diversity and integration in schools, at the Coalition we focus our efforts on supporting, promoting and growing these schools. We are tackling the challenges of running diverse school environments and sharing best practices for serving diverse communities. Moreover, we hope to expand our interactions with traditional schools and [pullquote]we hope to serve as models for charters and traditional schools alike.[/pullquote] We invite anyone dedicated to this cause—including Kaplan—to come together to realize our shared vision for integrated public schools.

Sonia Park

Sonia Park is Executive Director of Diverse Charter Schools Coalition and has over 18 years of experience in school start-up, support, accountability and development. She has a background in organization and school development, support, and accountability in relation to school-based, district, state and federal policies and practices. Prior to joining the Diverse Charter Schools Coalition, she served under Secretary John King at the US Department of Education as a Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Innovation and Improvement where she worked on policies concerning charter schools and provided guidance for Race to the Top-District grantees. Before this, Sonia was the Executive Director of Manhattan Charter Schools, a two-school charter network located in lower Manhattan. Sonia also worked under the New York City Department of Education’s Chancellor Denis Walcott as the Executive Director of Charter Schools, Accountability, and Support. She has also worked with the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, NY Charter Schools Resource Center, NY Charter Schools Association, and Edison Schools. She’s presented at statewide, regional, and national charter schools conferences and has been a national a peer reviewer. As a consultant, she’s worked with such organizations as the NY State Education Department, Charter Schools Institute of the State University of New York, the National Association of Charter School Authorizers, New Visions for New Schools, The Newark Charter Schools Fund and the Children’s Aid Society.

The Feed

Explainers

  • What's an IEP and How to Ensure Your Child's Needs Are Met?

    Ed Post Staff

    If you have a child with disabilities, you’re not alone: According to the latest data, over 7 million American schoolchildren — 14% of all students ages 3-21 — are classified as eligible for special...

  • Seeking Justice for Black and Brown Children? Focus on the Social Determinants of Health

    Laura Waters

    The fight for educational equity has never been just about schools. The real North Star for this work is providing opportunities for each child to thrive into adulthood. This means that our advocacy...

  • Why Math Identity Matters

    Lane Wright

    The story you tell yourself about your own math ability tends to become true. This isn’t some Oprah aphorism about attracting what you want from the universe. Well, I guess it kind of is, but...