School Assignment Policies and Race:
A Comparison of Jefferson County and Mecklenburg County School Districts
Data Science for the Public Good
Jessica Flynn (Cornell University), Madison Arnsbarger (Virginia Tech), with Kathryn Schaefer Ziemer (SDAL)
Research Questions
Motivation
• Given that Jefferson County has a school assignment integration plan,
can a difference in the racial distribution of students in schools be noted
when compared to Mecklenburg County?
• Is the plan working to achieve its goals of desegregation?
• Are Jefferson County schools more racially integrated?
• Can the integration be demonstrated spatially?
• Although segregation was deemed unconstitutional more than 50 years ago,
many schools across the country remain segregated due to policies in counties
and states (1).
• Students in segregated schools are often deprived of the positive outcomes
associated with integrated school settings (2):
• better critical thinking,
• communication,
• social skills, and
• lack of poverty.
Policy Review
CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG SCHOOLS
2014-15 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BOUNDARIES
Jefferson County
• 1975: Kentucky Board of Education mandates a race-based busing
system to promote desegregation.
• 2007: Meredith vs. Jefferson County Public School : Deemed
unconstitutional to integrate schools solely on the basis of race. A new
plan that aspires to create integrated clusters on the basis of income,
family education level, and percent whiteness was developed and is
currently in place.
Mecklenburg County
• 1971 Swann vs. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education: The
Supreme Court’s first metropolitan wide desegregation decision.
• 2002: Racial based integration ended. Public schools began to resegregate and have remained so to present times. Students are assigned
to schools solely based on geographic location.
Jefferson County Elementary School Clusters (3)
2014-15 Elementary School Sites
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CORNELIUS
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Full Magnet
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Partial Magnet
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Non Magnet
DAVIDSON
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!
J.V. WASHAM
* The colors represent different school boundaries.
GRAND OAK
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HUNTERSVILLE
TORRENCE
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CREEK !
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BARNETTE
HIGHLAND
CREEK
BLYTHE
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CROFT
COMMUNITY
! LONG CREEK
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MOUNTAIN ISLAND
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OAKDALE
STATESVILLE
ROAD
MOREHEAD
NEWELL
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HIDDEN VALLEY
UNIVERSITY
DRUID
ALLENBROOK
.
PARK
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HIGHLAND!
HILLS
. THOMASBORO !
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RENAISSANCE
J.W. GRIER
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TUCKASEEGEE
OAKLAWN
BRIARWOOD
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REEDY CREEK
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BRUNS !
HIGHLAND MILL!
BYERS
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!
AVE
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DEVONSHIRE
. ASHLEY IRWIN AVENUE
!
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SHAMROCK
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WESTERLY
PARK
FIRST WARD GARDENS
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!
HILLS
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J.H. GUNN
. WINDSOR HICKORY
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BARRINGER
.ELIZABETH MERRY
!
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GROVE
PARK
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OAKS
REID!
DILWORTH CHANTILLY!
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. MARIE G.
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BILLINGS WINTERFIELD
PARK
DAVIS !
ALBEMARLE
MYERS
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.-VILLE
SEDGEFIELD PARK
. ROAD
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. EASTOVER
!
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COLLINSWOOD
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COTSWOLD
STEELE CREEK
EE WADDELL
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LANGUAGE ACADEMY
MONTCLAIRE
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LAKE WYLIE
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SHARON
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.OLDE
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ELIZABETH
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LANE !
RIVER GATE
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PALISADES PARK
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! MCALPINE
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.HAWK
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RIDGE
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MCKEE
ROAD
ENDHAVEN
BALLANTYNE
´
PROVIDENCE
SPRING
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MATTHEWS
SMITHFIELD
PINEVILLE
BAIN
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PROVIDENCE
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CROWN
POINT
GREENWAY
PARK
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. POLO
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RIDGE
.ELON
!
PARK
CMS Planning Services
Data and Method
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LANSDOWNE
BEVERLY
WOODS
STERLING
PINEY GROVE
RAMA
ROAD
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NATIONS
. HUNTINGTOWNE
FORD !
FARMS
WINGET PARK
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PINEWOOD !
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CLEAR CREEK
LEBANON
ROAD
IDLEWILD
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.PARK ROAD
!
SELWYN
BEREWICK
UNIVERSITY
MEADOWS
NATHANIEL
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ALEXANDER !
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WHITEWATER
ACADEMY
BERRYHILL
STONEY CREEK
DAVID COX
ROAD
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PAW CREEK
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WINDING
SPRINGS
HORNETS
NEST
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RIVER OAKS
ACADEMY
MALLARD
CREEK
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TRILLIUM
SPRINGS
0
2.5
Miles
5
10
Mecklenburg County Elementary School Assignments (4)
Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS)
• Kentucky and North Carolina
• Jefferson and Mecklenburg Counties
• Academic Year Fall 2013
• Elementary public school grades 3-5
• 88 in Jefferson County
• 103 in Mecklenburg County
Racial Breakdowns by Elementary School
Race
Descriptive Analysis
• Polar histograms depict the racial breakdown, as a percentage, for the
Jefferson County and Mecklenburg County school districts. Each bar on
the charts represents an individual elementary school within the
respective county.
• In the Jefferson County chart, the schools are grouped into the
13 clusters that the school assignment plan denotes.
• Spatial correlation graphs display the proportions of White and Black
students. Each point represents a school in its respective county, and
the size of the point aids in visualizing the proportions.
Jefferson County
Jefferson County
Mecklenburg County
Proportion
Latitude
Discussion
Longitude
Mecklenburg County
Latitude
Proportion
• A comparison of the polar histograms shows that Jefferson County schools
appear to be more integrated than Mecklenburg County Schools.
• Percentages of each racial group remain relatively consistent across
schools.
• Jefferson County schools are less likely to be dominated by a single racial
group, whereas in Mecklenburg County, minority-majority schools are frequent.
• The spatial graphs show that in both counties, where Whites are prevalent,
Blacks are sparse and vice versa.
• In Jefferson County, the city of Louisville schools are largely populated
with minorities, while the outer suburbs are populated by whites.
• A similar effect is observed in Mecklenburg schools near the city of
Charlotte.
• In conclusion, the Jefferson County integration plan has not fully broken down
racial segregation in schools, especially in urban areas, and a more
comprehensive policy must be created to do so.
Longitude
References
1. Siegel-Hawley, G. P. (2011). City lines, county lines, color lines: An analysis of school and housing segregation patterns in four southern metropolitan areas, 1990-2010
2. Orfield, G., Frankenberg, E., Ee, J., & Kuscera, J. (2014, May 25). Brown at 60: Great Progress, a Long Retreat and an Uncertain Future. Civil Rights Project.
3. Semuels, A. (2015, March 27). Louisville Gave Desegregation a Try. The Atlantic. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/03/the-city-that-believed-in-desegregation/388532/
4. CMS. (2016). County-wide Elementary School Map. Retrieved from http://www.cms.k12.nc.us/cmsdepartments/StudentPlacement/Documents/Elem_bdy_1516_.pdf
bi.vt.edu/sdal