Integrating Schools in a Changing Society

As a result of tremendous social, legal, and political movements after the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, the South led the nation in school desegregation from the late 1960s through the beginning of the twenty-first century. However, following a series of court cases in the past two decades--including a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court decision that raised potentially strong barriers for districts wishing to pursue integration--public schools in the South and across the nation are now resegregating faster than ever.In this comprehensive volume, a roster of leading scholars in educational policy and related fields offer eighteen essays seeking to illuminate new ways for American public education to counter persistent racial and socioeconomic inequality in our society. Drawing on extensive research, the contributors reinforce the key benefits of racially integrated schools, examine remaining options to pursue multiracial integration, and discuss case examples that suggest how to build support for those efforts. Framed by the editors' introduction and a conclusion by Gary Orfield, these essays engage the heated debates over school reform and advance new arguments about the dangers of resegregation while offering practical, research-grounded solutions to one of the most pressing issues in American education.The contributors are:Courtney Bell, Educational Testing ServiceRobert Bifulco, Syracuse UniversityJohn Charles Boger, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillCasey D. Cobb, University of ConnecticutElizabeth DeBray, University of Georgia Sarah L. Diem, University of MissouriJacquelyn Duran, Columbia UniversityErica Frankenberg, Pennsylvania State University Patricia Gandara, University of California, Los Angeles Ellen Goldring, Vanderbilt UniversityWillis D. Hawley, University of MarylandJennifer Jellison Holme, University of Texas at AustinEric A. Houck, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillJacqueline Jordan Irvine, Emory UniversityRichard D. Kahlenberg, The Century FoundationChinh Q. Le, New Jersey Division on Civil RightsKatherine Cumings Mansfield, University of Texas at AustinGary Orfield, University of California, Los AngelesMyron Orfield, University of MinnesotaDouglas D. Ready, Columbia UniversitySean F. Reardon, Stanford University Lori Rhodes, Stanford UniversityJanelle Scott, University of California, BerkeleyGenevieve Siegel-Hawley, University of California, Los AngelesMegan R. Silander, Columbia UniversityClaire Smrekar, Vanderbilt UniversityAmy Stuart Wells, Columbia UniversitySheneka Williams, University of GeorgiaTerrenda White, Columbia University