3 myths about school segregation we’re still living with today

In the wake of the U.S Supreme Court’s decision striking down affirmative action in admission to America’s colleges and universities, it is all the more vital that the United States remove the racial disadvantages and inequalities in its pre-K-to-12 education, which sets the stage for higher education. The urgency is underscored by the fact that racial segregation in America’s public schools is still prevalent throughout the nation, even as we approach the 70th anniversary next year of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.

That landmark 1954 Supreme Court decision declared such segregation unconstitutional, but other forces — both formal and informal — have kept that segregation in place. Now, a new research report by ERASE Racism, where I serve as president, dispels key foundational myths that have long reinforced segregation by analyzing how reinforced segregation in New York State continues to negatively impact the education of Black students.

Too often, school segregation is considered a relic of the past, addressed by the Brown decision, and where children go to school is seen as a function of where they live. Yet pervasive school segregation remains held in place by laws and practices that keep people of different socio-economic classes and races apart. New York State law, for instance, grants local control of zoning decisions to individual communities, which often preserve large lot sizes that limit development to expensive homes, preventing more affordable housing and excluding low-income New Yorkers. Nationwide, overtly discriminatory housing practices that have been outlawed, such as racial steering, continue to foster segregation and inequality.

In the 2020-21 school year, more than a third of students in K-12 public schools in the United States — about 18.5 million — attended schools where 75 percent or more students were of a single race or ethnicity. Fourteen percent of students attended schools where 90 percent or more of the students were of a single race or ethnicity. In New York State, the segregation is even greater; according to the ERASE Racism report, one out of three students attend a public school district that is intensely segregated (that is, 90-100 percent students of color).

This pervasive segregation has resulted in school district-level racial disparities in spending and resource allocation that negatively impact the academic performance of students of color, and serve to promulgate myths that guide the development of educational policies. It is such myths that the ERASE Racism report now dispels with data, revealing findings that shatter unfounded, yet pervasive, narratives about race and educational achievement.

The first myth is that the underfunding of school districts predominantly comprised of students of color results from residents not paying enough in taxes. To the contrary, the report finds that New York’s intensely segregated districts of students of color have the lowest taxable property values and the lowest local revenue; yet they have the highest tax rates and tax burden. This finding updates research from 2008 by the Fiscal Policy Institute to demonstrate that New York’s communities of color have long had the greatest school tax burden.

The second myth that the report refutes is that white children have higher academic performance in school because their parents value education more than parents of color. The finding cited above — that intensely segregated districts of students of color have the highest tax rates — shows the importance that their parents place on providing their children with quality education.

The third myth is that under-performance by students in these intensely segregated districts is due to the students’ capacity. Here, the report shows that school expenditures are a deciding factor in student performance. Additionally, districts that are 91-100 percent white are not the highest-performing districts in the state, making race a poor determinant of success.

Essentially, when differences in regional cost of living and student need are taken into consideration, there is a direct correlation between per-pupil expenditures and the percentage of students who are proficient in 3^rd grade English. It is differences in expenditures across the state that are highly correlated with student performance. This critical finding adds to decades of research that have shown a direct correlation between school spending and student outcomes.

Yet school districts with the highest percentages of students of color have historically had the lowest per-pupil expenditures despite bearing the greatest school tax burden. Furthermore, state and federal funding have done little to alleviate the cost burden experienced by communities in these districts. In fact, when differences in regional cost of living and student need are considered, state and federal funding have disproportionately benefited districts that are 91-100 percent white, while doing little to close the revenue gap for districts with the highest proportions of students of color and need.

School segregation persists in America in part because of the acceptance of racially fueled myths. Key myths have now been refuted with data. As we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Brown decision next year, we can replace these harmful myths with the truth: There is no credible relationship between race and academic success.

Given the right resources, all students can succeed. With these myths dispelled, we can together change the laws and practices that have kept our schools separate and unequal for far too long.

Laura Harding is president of the New-York based civil rights organization ERASE Racism.