Report: Charter schools too segregated
Author: Connie Llanos, Staff Writer
Charter schools nationwide could be violating the civil rights of students because they are increasingly separating them by race, class and language, according to a report recently released by the Civil Rights project at UCLA.
The study finds that black and Latino students enrolled at charters - schools that are publicly funded but independently run - are more likely to be isolated with classmates of their same race.
"We are seeing a lot of charters as segregated as schools in the old South that were the target of the civil-rights movement," said Gary Orfield, co-founder of the Civil Rights project.
The study finds that black and Latino students enrolled at charters - schools that are publicly funded but independently run - are more likely to be isolated with classmates of their same race.
"We are seeing a lot of charters as segregated as schools in the old South that were the target of the civil-rights movement," said Gary Orfield, co-founder of the Civil Rights project.
Charter school operators and advocates, however, refute the study's findings.
"The civil rights issue here is the persistent achievement gap and high dropout rates for these students when they are left to languish in traditional schools," said Jed Wallace, president of the California Charter Schools Association.
In California, charter campuses also attracted a higher proportion of white students than traditional schools. Based on a sample study, charters also failed to report enrollment for English language learners and low-income students or provide services to meet the needs of those students.
"I think that the key is that all schools, regardless of whether they are traditional or charter schools, have an absolute obligation to address the disparity and achievement gaps between the highest and lowest performing subgroups of students," said Jason Watts, who is expected to be principal of the Oxford Preparatory Academy, which is set to open next fall in the Chino Valley.
"We all need to be held accountable in that our absolute primary job is to meet the needs of every single student."
Staff writer Neil Nisperos contributed to this report.
"The civil rights issue here is the persistent achievement gap and high dropout rates for these students when they are left to languish in traditional schools," said Jed Wallace, president of the California Charter Schools Association.
In California, charter campuses also attracted a higher proportion of white students than traditional schools. Based on a sample study, charters also failed to report enrollment for English language learners and low-income students or provide services to meet the needs of those students.
"I think that the key is that all schools, regardless of whether they are traditional or charter schools, have an absolute obligation to address the disparity and achievement gaps between the highest and lowest performing subgroups of students," said Jason Watts, who is expected to be principal of the Oxford Preparatory Academy, which is set to open next fall in the Chino Valley.
"We all need to be held accountable in that our absolute primary job is to meet the needs of every single student."
Staff writer Neil Nisperos contributed to this report.
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