An important effect of racial segregation in New York schools is the corresponding segregation of children who are vulnerable or expensive to educate in various ways: children with disabilities, those who don’t speak English well, and most of all children living in poverty.
I created this tool to help people recognize the significance of these demographic differences in terms of their own home school or district. Type in the name of two schools, districts or counties in New York to see how they would look if the demographics were switched.
You’ll see, for instance, that if the Pittsford Central School District had the same demographics as the Rochester City School District, it would have 4,537 more economically disadvantaged students; 776 more English language learners; and 486 more students with disabilities – all in a total student body of 5,275. That is worth keeping in mind the next time Pittsford lands on a national recognition list, or Rochester faces a fresh state sanction.
The data comes from 2018-19 enrollment figures available at data.nysed.gov. Many thanks to Jesse Lansner for building the calculator.