Cloaking Inequity

Although U.S. schools are more racially diverse than ever before, they are growing increasingly segregated, with African American and Latina/o students attending more segregated schools than at any time in the past 20 years (Orfield, 2009). Although current levels of school segregation are reminiscent of the pre-Brown era, the demographics of students in U.S. schools […]

In the post “Merit” Apartheid: Forces Determined to Segregate Higher Education? I wrote: It appears more and more that there are forces that are determined to re-segregate higher education in Texas and elsewhere. The desegregation of higher education is currently inevitable in places like Texas under existing policies such at the Top Ten Percent Plan because of the rapidly […]

I suspect P.T. Barnum would be proud of the showmanship eminating from Louisiana— an educational policy circus. The Recovery School District has been acclaimed as “a game changer for New Orleans” and very likely today be up for a vote in the Texas House in Senate Bill 1718— and perhaps soon in a Legislature near you. […]

It appears more and more that there are forces that are determined to re-segregate higher education in Texas and elsewhere. The desegregation of higher education is currently inevitable in places like Texas under existing policies such at the Top Ten Percent Plan because of the rapidly changing racial demographics of students in K-12 (Note: We examined […]

An infinity of good and bad things get unevenly distributed across populations for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with the kinds of discrimination that are banned in our laws and Constitution. Chester Finn Congratulations, us Americans can officially pat ourselves on the back. From my estimation, from where I sit, women have now […]

Are you ready for Cloaking Inequity’s most controversial post to date? I recently saw Django Unchained— I realize I am behind the times, but Redbox provides my film entertainment 80% of the time and the film just arrived. At any rate, I realize that Django Unchained is a thought-provoking film. When the film was first […]

As discussed in an earlier post, I travelled last week to Chicago for a panel discussion on Reframing Reform: Achieving Equity and Excellence in Public Education held by The Center for Tax and Budget Accountability. As you might expect, the Chicago Public School closures was a prominent part of the conversation. Jitu Brown, a parent and community organizer in […]

Julian Vasquez Heilig gave an interview about “college” and “career” readiness to Veronica Zaragovia from KUT News. We briefly discussed the education bills passing through the Texas Legislature that are stirring debate on impact to students, especially minorities. See my earlier post Career and Tech: “Show me the money!” for thoughts on funding for career programs and the implications tracking students […]

Dear Civil Rights and choice advocate, I have noticed that some Civil Rights advocates are supporting and leading the school “choice” movement. They are searching for alternatives as our nation has consistently and purposely underserved students of color. As one reformer from Los Angeles told me, Latina/os and African Americans have been forced to attend “f_cked […]

When you think of school choice, what comes to mind? Vouchers? Charters? Intra- and Inter- district choice? Magnet schools? Today I received a forwarded email request from a senator that was gathering information in response to pressure for “school choice” bills at the Texas Legislature. I have been pondering “school choice,” and why it is […]

Join KLRU for the live taping of Blackademics: Education, Performance and Youth Empowerment Date: Wednesday February 13, 2013 Time: 7 pm (doors open at 6:30 pm) Location: KLRU Studio 6A (map) RSVP: Event is free, but RSVP is required. RSVP now Join us for a live recording of nationally and internationally renowned black studies scholars as […]

In the summer of 2012, a Houston Chronicle editorial argued that the state was faced with “widespread panic” at the low levels of students passing the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR), TEA and Pearson’s new testing regime. Don’t panic the scores will go up— and they will do so over the next […]

Yesterday I made some “no holds barred” statements to the Huffington Post about school finance, politics, and race. First, the background. Brookings said minority children will be the majority in the entire United States by 2019. The growth in the Latina/o community fueled almost all of the population growth in the United States over the last ten […]

Citation: Reddick, R. J., Heilig, J. V., & Valdez, P. L. (2012). Bridging a Black-Brown Divide: Black Male Students at Hispanic-Serving Institutions In A. A. Hilton, J. L. Wood, & C. W. Lewis (Eds.), Black males in postsecondary education: Examining their experiences in diverse institutional contexts, (pp. 183-208). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing. Link to pre-published draft. What […]

The premise that vouchers create a competitive market place for students and parents is questionable once the assumption of who can actually compete in or benefit from that market place is considered. Unrestricted, universal school choice, has in practice increased the segregation of diverse learners (e.g. ability, SES, and Race/Ethnicity) (NEA, 2012). Why is this […]

A few more takes on the Harvard Educational Review article Illusion of Inclusion in which we analyzed the Texas US Social Studies Standards. Radio interview on KUT. Print interview in the San Antonio Express-News “If you’re a Native American or Asian American student, your history is absent and the state board of education is sending a message that […]

The common refrain is that charter schools are public schools. Critics, such as Diane Ravitch, have said that charter schools accept public money but act private. I have levied a variety of critiques at charters (Even made Jonathan Alter a little bit mad) despite the fact that I was an instructor at an Aspire charter […]

Race and Racism. Is there a topic we struggle with more in the United States relative to public policy and education? I recently had an extended discussion with a long-time friend on Facebook regarding race, and what i perceived as a “racist” statement. We debated how racism should be defined… So what is exactly racism? […]