A Washington Post analysis finds that there are nearly twice as many students enrolled in highly integrated school districts than there were 25 years ago, a little-noticed surge that reflects the nation’s shifting demographics.
In many big cities and suburbs, segregation remains high. These are districts that have long been home to a racially diverse mix of students. In some cases, segregation has grown worse since 1995, the first year for which national data is available. Black students are more likely to attend segregated schools than white or Latino children.
In newly diverse areas, though, there is far more integration. These are districts that used to be homogeneous, typically mostly white, but where an influx of Latino families has created a diverse student body. Unlike their big-city counterparts, schools in these districts are more likely to reflect the demographics of their districts as a whole.
But the data only tells us part of the story. We want to hear from you about your experiences, both as students and as parents. Were the schools segregated in the community where you grew up? Were you part of a court-ordered desegregation program? Do your children go to school with children of other races, or do schools reflect segregated housing patterns in your city? Do you live in a smaller city or town that has recently become racially diverse? How have the schools responded to those changes?
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