Affirmative action is preserved, next let's improve public schools

Crisis, The, Sep/Oct 2003 by Darden, Edwin C

In case the nation had any doubt, the Supreme Court of the United States has declared that race and ethnicity still matter in 21 st Century, 2003 America.

That was the message behind a pair of rulings in the University of Michigan affirmative action cases about college admissions handed down in June. The Court had a single issue to consider and two cases before it. The issue: whether the University of Michigan - a statesupported institution of higher education - could give an admissions advantage to racial minority students.

Barbara Grutter and Jennifer Gratz were failed applicants to the law school and undergraduate school respectively. Both were convinced they deserved to get in and blamed the university's affirmative action program for putting someone else in their place. They filed separate lawsuits claiming a violation of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment principal of equal protection under the law.

In Grutter v. Bollinger the court approved of the law school's affirmative action plan, which requires admissions officers to actively pursue a "critical mass" of minority students. The Supreme Court accepted the argument that there are clear educational, economic and practical benefits to a diverse student body.

In Gratz v. Bollinger, however, the court struck down the university's undergraduate affirmative action policy that gave an automatic 20-point bonus (on a 100-point scale) in application scoring based on race. Justices slammed that system as too much like a quota system and said it failed to treat students as individuals. They contrasted it with the law school practice, in which officials review each file and seek to "admit a group of students who individually and collectively are among the most capable" and "a mix of students with varying backgrounds and experiences who will respect and learn from each other."

What the rulings mean is that, for now, public colleges, universities and graduate schools can continue to give advantages to achieve diversity. But while the focus of the court was primarily on higher education, the cases give K-12 public schools the legal power and perhaps the moral imperative to enact change that ultimately will serve both excellence and equity.

With this goal in mind, the larger question is what should be done at the K12 level so that affirmative action programs are not needed for minority students to gain entrance into the nation's top colleges and universities? What means are necessary to improve public schools and close the yawning K-12 achievement gap that continues to plague minority students?

By implementing the following strategies, I think we can succeed, relegating conversations about the achievement gap to the scrap heap and inspiring brighter educational outcomes.

Investing in Public Schools

For the most part, public schools have been and are where most children of color are educated. Unfortunately, minority students are often educated in the most impoverished schools in the worst neighborhoods. In most states, for example, the system for financing schools is inequitable.

This must end. States and school districts must take an approach in which the most financial resources are pinpointed to the areas of greatest need. It is no accident that economic status - not race or even education level of the parent - is the most accurate indicator of student performance.

Urban schools in particular need to be bolstered beyond their current condition. The combination of student poverty, poor facilities and fewer resources means that city children are relegated to secondclass status.

In a January 2003 publication called "Achievement for all Children: An Apple Perspective," Apple Computer Corp. profiles what it refers to as "the urban divide." The publication revealed that only 50 percent of children graduate from high school in the 32 largest urban districts and that more than 50 percent of the children entering urban high schools read at or below the 6th grade level.

With few resources, most public schools in predominantly minority areas can't afford to provide the latest technology, advanced placement and honors programs or the best-trained teachers.

A 2000 study by Princeton University professor Alan B. Krueger found that "Black students seem to lag behind in using the latest technology in school, and their teachers seem to lag behind in their preparation to use the latest technology." The "digital divide" is exacerbated when schools have outdated technology that endows students with skills that are obsolete when they acquire them.

The fact is, not only do poor children start out behind, but they continue to lag behind students from more prosperous schools. If poor and minority children are to compete on equal footing, we must invest in our public schools, particularly those in the most distressed neighborhoods.

Quality Teachers, Quality Leaders

Educators know that achievement begins with the quality of the teacher inside the classroom. Investing in schools means having quality teachers with broad knowledge, high expectations and creative teaching skills. Good teachers encourage students to take challenging courses. Nevertheless, because of a lack of financial support, many poor schools can't afford to offer advanced placement and international baccalaureate programs, which help prepare students for college-level courses.