The New York Timesā podcast series āNice White Parentsā may leave listeners convinced that school integration is a failed experiment, doomed by insincere White liberals and no longer desired by many Black families. But in (TCF), ¶¶Ņõapp alumna Michelle Burris (M.A. ā19) and co-author Stefan Lallinger argue that, in todayās āmulticultural, pluralistic society, in which Kā12 White students are no longer a majority of American students, both the opportunity and the need to get it right have never been greater.ā
HIGHLIGHTING āTHE NEED TO GET IT RIGHTā Burris believes integration is essential in āa multicultural, pluralistic society.ā (Photo courtesy Century Foundation)
Burris, TCF Senior Policy Fellow and a graduate of TCās Politics & Education program, and Lallinger, Fellow and Director of TCFās Bridges Collaborative, acknowledge a common refrain in many Black communities of āGive us equal resources and leave us alone.ā But āthese arguments are in large part a retort to decades of desegregation done wrong, which often debased and devalued Black pedagogy, curriculum, and personnel,ā they write. āMoreover, there are few, if any, examples of public, segregated Black or low-income schools that receive equal resources (inclusive of facilities, money, equipment, human capital) as their white or more affluent counterparts.ā
School integration does work, and when done well, is one of the best tools we have to ensure a high-quality education for all Americans.
āMichelle Burris (M.A. '19) and Stefan Lallinger
Citing evidence that integration efforts are alive and well nationwide ā including in Minneapolis, scene of last springās police killing of George Floyd ā Burris and Lallinger invoke Martin Luther Kingās assertion that āintegration is the positive acceptance of desegregation and the welcomed participation of Negroes into the total range of human activities.ā They conclude: āSchool integration does work, and when done well, is one of the best tools we have to ensure a high-quality education for all&²Ō²ś²õ±č;“”³¾±š°ł¾±³¦²¹²Ō²õ.ā
[Read a profile of Burris and watch a video clip of her from ¶¶Ņõappās 2019 Graduates Gallery.]