Education experts say a proposed redrawing of zoning boundaries for Metro Schools could have a negative impact on desegregation efforts over the past 10 years.
That was the general consensus of a panel discussion last night organized by Vanderbilt
University to tackle the potential re-segregation in Metro Schools.
School board members are meeting this week with parents from each cluster to
present a rezoning plan, which came about because of a new high school in
Antioch. The proposal also includes closing five small schools and keeping
students as close to home as possible, which could create even more
predominantly single-race schools.
Richard Dinkins, a Davidson County Chancellor and former desegregation
attorney, says the district should avoid jumping quickly into a countywide
rezoning plan.
“Creating one in Cane Ridge to address issues out there does not necessarily
mandate a zoning change in another cluster.”
Vanderbilt researcher Ellen Goldring says she’s found neighborhood schools
aren’t the cure-all some believe them to be, that parental involvement
doesn’t necessarily follow.
She says the concentrations of poverty that would come from the rezoning
plan could isolate many students.
“I think the question is to what extent does this community value diversity
and to what extent does this community want to have more diverse schools.”
Goldring says a continued drop in the percentage of white students
attending Metro Schools shows diversity may not be on the top of every
parents’ wish-list.
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