Policy Briefs
WHAT POLICIES HELP ADVANCE SCHOOL INTEGRATION?
Policy Briefs
What Does School Integration Look Like Today?
In deciding whether to include integration strategies in their work, communities are likely to begin with an exploration of the question: “What is integration?” Integration, narrowly speaking, is the practice of bringing together students from different races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic backgrounds in an attempt to address systemic educational inequities and foster social cohesion across lines of difference.
Integration strategies often relate to policies that determine how students are assigned to specific schools and programs. For example, districts might consider diversity when drawing school attendance boundaries or implement a "controlled choice" plan. Educators might also offer magnet schools, intentionally diverse charters, or interdistrict transfer programs to help facilitate diversity. Given the connection between housing segregation and school segregation, they might also coordinate with housing agencies.
To learn more, refer to Policy Brief 10: Including Racial and Socioeconomic Diversity in ESSA District Plans
