The State Of Black Education And Brown Vs. Board Of Education Debate

The Demographics of Ohio Schools

Let us start with the condition of diversity within Ohio’s public schools. While still predominantly white, the demographics of students in Ohio is more prominent than the national average. Throughout the 2017-2018 academic year, data was collected by the Ohio Department of Education regarding the demographics of both teachers and students in Ohio schools. In total, there were 1,674,341 students enrolled in Ohio school throughout the given school year. The following racial statistics were recorded and released in the Department’s report: 2,070 (0.1%) identified as American Indian or Alaskan Native; 39,512 (2.4%) identified as Asian or Pacific Islander; 278,839 (16.7%) identified as Black, Non-Hispanic; 91,724 (5.5%) identified as Hispanic; 1,178,393 (70.4%) identified as White, Non-Hispanic; 83,803 (5.0%) identified as Multiracial. The report also tracked demographics of students under the category of “diverse learners,” including students with disabilities (244,777 students or 14.6%), those that are economically disadvantaged (851,769 students or 50.9%), and those that are homeless (20,083 or 1.2%).

While the vast majority of Ohio students are white identifying, there have been sharp increases in other marginalized demographics within decade between 2007 and 2017, including an increase of 46,840 (+104%) Hispanic students, 14,783 (+60%) Asian or Pacific Islander students, and 30,755 (58%) Multiracial students. However, there have actually been decreases in both the number of black and white students between the same decade, with a -3% and -12% loss for each demographic respectively.

More polarizing trends can be seen in the demographics of Ohio teachers. In 2017, there were a total of 134,053 employed educators: 60 (1%) were American Indian or Alaskan Native; 270 (0.3%) were Asian or Pacific Islander; 4,399 (4.1%) were Black, Non-Hispanic; 100,894 (94.7%) were White, Non-Hispanic; 155 (0.1%) were Multiracial.

Deterrents of Black Youth Education

Although remaining the largest racial minority group in the state, there has been a steady decline of black students within the past decade. While it is difficult, and potentially impossible, to pinpoint a single, absolute source of this change, there do exist social, political and economic explanations for the phenomenon. In a report released by the Ohio Department of Education in 2017, it was reported that 27.4% of African American students were identified as chronically absentee. The term ‘chronic absenteeism’, which encompasses 16.4% of Ohio’s youth, may be defined as the following : “ESSA defines chronic absenteeism as missing 10 percent or more of the school year for any reason — excused absences, unexcused absences and absences due to out-of-school suspensions. Students who are chronically absent are missing a significant amount of school, thus, missing out on important classroom time. Chronic absenteeism is different from truancy and from average daily attendance” (Ohio Department of Education).

The Suspension and Truancy of Black Students

A report conducted by the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in 2014 tracked the relationship between race and discipline within Ohio schools. Several of the results found suggested a correlation between the two. The study found that black students are suspended and expelled at rates three times higher than their white counterparts. Additionally, these statistics are persistent—they have remained comparable throughout years of extensive research—and have shown to have extensive consequences on the future education of said students. These statistics are not unique to Ohio—in fact, in 2006-2007, all states witnessed a higher rate of suspension for black students than white students—but the state ranked fourteenth during this year in terms of this disparity.

The Effects of Brown v Board of Education

One of the most landmark cases in United States history was Brown v. Board of Education (1954). It was the ultimate ruling of the Supreme Court—predominantly focused on those fostering black and white identities—that the segregation of students was unconstitutional. Thus, the systemic segregation and othering within American schools ended and was replaced with apparent integration of both students and teachers. However, a closer look at the aftermath of the case reveals that the realities of the situation were far from unifying. In his book 'Missing Teachers, Impaired Communities: The Unanticipated Consequences of Brown v. Board of Education on the African American Teaching Force at the Precollegiate Level,” authors Mildred J. Hudson and Barbara J. Holmes lineate the institutional consequences of the Court’s decision. Before the case reached its conclusion, there were approximately 82,000 black and African American teachers that were responsible for the education of two million students with shared racial and ethnic identities. Following the Court’s findings in 1954, over 38,000 of these teachers and administrators in the south and border states were relieved of their positions. This also had drastic effects on those black students entering the education field—there was an approximate decrease of 66% in this field alone. Between the years 1984 and 1989, 21,515 black and African American candidates for teaching were phased out by new teaching requirements—including those concerning certification and educational program admission—throughout the nation. And by the year 2000, only 5% of the teaching force would be of a minority background compared to its student counterpart maintaining a whopping 35%. Now, there exist only 30% students from multicultural backgrounds and 94.7% in Ohio alone, suggest that the trend has continued.

Charter Schools

‘Charter school’ is an overarching term that encompasses choice-based, tuition-free public-school options that are privately owned and run. There now exist approximately 7,000 charter schools nationally, with 3 million students enrolled as of 2018 (Prothero). Due to being privately operated, these types of schools enjoy an increased sense of agency in terms of individual affairs. However, this agency comes at a cost—charter schools are not subject to the same measures of accountability that are used for their traditional counterparts. Charter school demographics vary disparately from those statewide; compared to the statewide demographics, charter schools contain are 45% African American and 45% from low-income families. These schools also typically perform at much lower rates than their public and private counterparts, suggesting that the resources available to them have not been successfully in catalyzing the successes of their students in the ways that they may aim to. The 2019 Ohio Budget rolled back oversight for charter schools in the state, and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine also allocated $30,000,000 in this budget for high-performing charter schools, offering an incentive for these institutions to increase their records for student achievement. Additionally, the budget rolled back oversight for charter schools. Specifically, the 52 charter schools that were at risk of closing will have one additional year to raise their rates of student achievement.