School Segregation in the 21st Century US
Paper Session
Friday, Jan. 7, 2022 12:15 PM - 2:15 PM (EST)
- Chair: Vikram Maheshri, University of Houston
Explaining Recent Trends in U.S. School Segregation
Abstract
From 2002 to 2018, the fraction of minority-segregated public schools in the US has roughly doubled, but the fraction of White-segregated schools has decreased at an even faster rate. As a result, the prevalence of segregated schools has decreased in most parts of the country even though minority students have become more isolated. Using data on the universe of US public school enrollments, we develop an empirical approach that allows us to decompose observed changes in segregation into endogenous, demographic and residual channels. The endogenous channel is fueled by parents choosing schools on the basis of the racial compositions of their student bodies; this channel can in principle dwarf all other determinants of segregation over time due to social multiplier effects. However, it has actually been the least important in explaining recent trends. Instead, demographic change, mostly due to Hispanic immigration, is the most important channel. These findings are particularly pronounced in the largest urban areas in the country, which not only experience the largest changes in segregation during this period but are also the areas in which policymakers are most concerned about the pernicious effects of segregation.The Latinx Great Migration and its Effects on School Segregation
Abstract
By 2020, children of color under 18 outnumbered non-Hispanic white children in the United States (Vespa and Armstrong, 2020). In this paper, we estimate the effect of this historic demographic transition during which the U.S. has seen its Hispanic population almost triple over the last three decades, on U.S. school segregation. Merging data from the Mexican Migration Project, the Mexican census, the EMIF border survey, the U.S. Census, and NCES Common Core Data on schools, and building on Derenoncourt (2021), we use a shift-share instrument that combines 1990-2000 network links between Mexican states and U.S. MSAs with exogenous Mexican state-level out-migration shocks to isolate variation in the percentage change in Hispanic student shares in U.S. schools districts. We find that for each percentage point increase in the Hispanic student share, the multi-group Theil index of school segregation rises by 0.2 or about 0.3 standard deviations. This effect is driven by school districts without a history of court-ordered desegregation plans. We also present evidence consistent with a "white flight" in response to the arrival of Hispanic students. Ongoing work unravels the underlying mechanisms, in particular, the role of policies such as court-ordered desegregation plans or school finance reforms in mitigating the negative effects of racial diversification on school segregation.Dividing Lines: Racial Segregation across Local Government Boundaries
Abstract
We describe the empirical relationship between local government boundaries and residential segregation in the US. First, we study recent changes in the distribution of segregation within and between local governments in metropolitan areas, using census block data on residential demographics over the period 1990-2020. We find that segregation across local government boundaries explains a substantial share of racial stratification patterns in metropolitan areas, which has changed only little over the last thirty years. Next, we use spatial regression dis- continuity methods to distinguish between household sorting due to neighborhood amenities and public goods provided by local governments. The prevalence of demographic discontinuities at local government boundaries suggest that between-jurisdiction segregation patterns cannot be explained solely by proximity to neighborhood amenities. We discuss implications for pol- icy and future research, showing that both between-jurisdiction segregation and jurisdictional discontinuities can partly explain the correlation between total segregation and racial gaps in educational outcomes.The Risks and Benefits of School Integration for Participating Students: Evidence from a Randomized Desegregation Program
Abstract
Over the last 40 years, efforts to desegregate schools have largely been undone and intra-district programs have limited scope to stem the resulting rise in segregation. This is the first paper to study the short-run and long-run impacts of an inter-district desegregation program on the minority students given an opportunity to transfer to majority-white school districts. Students who are given the opportunity to transfer districts attend schools that are 73 percentage points more white than schools they would have attended. Transferring students have higher test scores, and, over the longer run, an increase in college enrollment by 8 percentage points. At the same time, there is an increase in special education classification and arrests, which are largely for non-violent offenses. Both the benefits and the risks of the desegregation program accrue to male students.Discussant(s)
Cody Tuttle
,
Princeton University
John Parman
,
College of William and Mary
Kalena Cortes
,
Texas A&M University
Peter Bergman
,
Columbia University
Tomas Monarrez
,
Urban Institute
JEL Classifications
- I2 - Education and Research Institutions
- H4 - Publicly Provided Goods