Segregation Academies Still Persist Across the South 70 Years After Brown vs. Board of Education

[Frodo]

This puts the debate over school vouchers in a whole new light for most of us here:

Segregation Academies Still Operate Across the South. One Town Grapples With Its Divided Schools

(...) Divisions like this have long played out across the region. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, declaring public school segregation unconstitutional. As the federal courts repeatedly ruled against the South’s massive resistance, many white people pivoted to a new tactic, one that is lesser known and yet profoundly influences the Black Belt region today: They created a web of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of private schools to educate white children.

Now, 70 years after the Brown decision, ProPublica has found about 300 schools that likely opened as segregation academies in the South are still operating. Some have flourished into pricey college-prep behemoths. Others, like Wilcox Academy, remain modest Christian schools. Many have accepted more nonwhite students over the years, and some now come close to reflecting the communities they serve.

But across Alabama’s 18 Black Belt counties, all of the remaining segregation academies ProPublica identified — about a dozen — are still vastly white, even though the region’s population is majority Black. And in the towns where these schools operate, they often persist as a dividing force.

Even when rural segregation academies offer fewer amenities than their public-school counterparts, white parents are often unwilling to voluntarily send their children to majority-Black public schools. That can be to the detriment of all students, especially in struggling communities where money is tight. It means doubling up on school overhead costs, and fewer students at each school means neither one can offer the robust programs that they could provide if their resources were combined.

[Born to Slay. Forced to Work.]

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

I know most of my aunts/uncles were sent to one for that exact reason when schools were forced to integrate. Even while the school was 30-40 minutes away.

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools. I got a much better education at a public school then when I was at a private “Christian” one, which is saying a lot for the rural south.

[jojoju1998]

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

I know most of my aunts/uncles were sent to one for that exact reason when schools were forced to integrate. Even while the school was 30-40 minutes away.

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools. I got a much better education at a public school then when I was at a private “Christian” one, which is saying a lot for the rural south.

Are these schools as academically rigorous as the Catholic Prep Schools, the mainline protestant schools, and the old old school elite academies ?

[Ancestral Republican]

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

I know most of my aunts/uncles were sent to one for that exact reason when schools were forced to integrate. Even while the school was 30-40 minutes away.

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools. I got a much better education at a public school then when I was at a private “Christian” one, which is saying a lot for the rural south.

Are these schools as academically rigorous as the Catholic Prep Schools, the mainline protestant schools, and the old old school elite academies ?

No

[gerritcole]

How is this different than elite prep academies in the northeast? Or is this just another sh**t on the south while we do the same thing in another way

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

This puts the debate over school vouchers in a whole new light for most of us here:

You mean because if there were school vouchers, these schools would be less white?  They aren't "segregation academies" if they have non-white students, as the article admits they do.

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

Wealthy whites don't have to send their kids to black schools because they can just move to places that don't have many black people. Most Christian school families aren't particularly wealthy, certainly not compared to those who go to secular private schools.

An important confounder in all this discussion is that the era of school desegregation coincided to a large degree with the era of school secularization with ending things like teacher-led prayer in school, both results of the Warren Court. So you can't look at a private Christian school that starts in the South in the 60s or 70s and assume that reaction to civil rights must have been the motivation.

[Born to Slay. Forced to Work.]

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

I know most of my aunts/uncles were sent to one for that exact reason when schools were forced to integrate. Even while the school was 30-40 minutes away.

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools. I got a much better education at a public school then when I was at a private “Christian” one, which is saying a lot for the rural south.

Are these schools as academically rigorous as the Catholic Prep Schools, the mainline protestant schools, and the old old school elite academies ?

To give you some perspective, most of these are extremely unregulated. I had a math teacher who was just some person they found and I had a quiz that about half of the test was extra credit nonsense questions cause she knew she taught so poorly.  She had to prior experience or training as a teacher.

[ReaganLimbaugh]

The below is right!!

This puts the debate over school vouchers in a whole new light for most of us here:

You mean because if there were school vouchers, these schools would be less white?  They aren't "segregation academies" if they have non-white students, as the article admits they do.

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

Wealthy whites don't have to send their kids to black schools because they can just move to places that don't have many black people. Most Christian school families aren't particularly wealthy, certainly not compared to those who go to secular private schools.

An important confounder in all this discussion is that the era of school desegregation coincided to a large degree with the era of school secularization with ending things like teacher-led prayer in school, both results of the Warren Court. So you can't look at a private Christian school that starts in the South in the 60s or 70s and assume that reaction to civil rights must have been the motivation.

[ηєω ƒяσηтιєя]

How is this different than elite prep academies in the northeast? Or is this just another sh**t on the south while we do the same thing in another way

I think that the main point of the article is that these happen in majority Black areas in the South.

[Indy Texas]

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

I know most of my aunts/uncles were sent to one for that exact reason when schools were forced to integrate. Even while the school was 30-40 minutes away.

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools. I got a much better education at a public school then when I was at a private “Christian” one, which is saying a lot for the rural south.

In decently sized metros, wealthy whites could already send their kids to the "old line" private schools in the area.

In those metros, the post-1960s schools that popped up tend to be of lower quality and some of them only managed to stay open for a few years, either because they could never achieve financial solvency or the families who had been attending them simply White Flighted themselves out to new suburbs and exurbs and enrolled in those public schools, obviating the need for the segregation academy.

Some of these schools were literally some mothers teaching kids out of some spare rooms at the Southern Baptist church. No specialized instruction, no varsity sports, no science labs or fine arts. These people were so unhingedly racist that they would rather deprive their children of all those things than have them have to share them with Those People's children.

[Del Tachi]

Segregation academies are maybe #692 on the list of priorities to fix about the U.S. education system.  Only about 1% of all K12 students attend these schools.

And it appears to be a self-correcting problem.  There are no more than 300 segregation academies today, compared to over 1,000 a generation ago.  The economy of these schools can't survive the continued depopulation and disinvestment of the Black Belt.

[Del Tachi]

How is this different than elite prep academies in the northeast? Or is this just another sh**t on the south while we do the same thing in another way

I think that the main point of the article is that these happen in majority Black areas in the South.

What exactly do you think the demographics of the elite, private schools of Boston or Los Angeles are like compared to their public schools?

[pppolitics]

The Atlantic also did a piece on this

In Southern Towns, 'Segregation Academies' Are Still Going Strong

https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/12/in-southern-towns-segregation-academies-are-still-going-strong/266207/

[ηєω ƒяσηтιєя]

What exactly do you think the demographics of the elite, private schools of Boston or Los Angeles are like compared to their public schools?

Yes, there is race and class-based segregation in schools all over the country. That's still not the point though.

Those elite schools in Boston and LA aren't in majority Black neighborhoods or regions, like the schools in the areas of the South that the OP article was talking about.

[Del Tachi]

What exactly do you think the demographics of the elite, private schools of Boston or Los Angeles are like compared to their public schools?

Yes, there is race and class-based segregation in schools all over the country. That's still not the point though.

Those elite schools in Boston and LA aren't in majority Black neighborhoods or regions, like the schools in the areas of the South that the OP article was talking about.

The Los Angeles Unified School District is only 10% White; Boston Public Schools only 15%. 

Even public schools located in predominantly White neighborhoods (like University High School in Brentwood) are less than 20% White.  It's mostly because rich, White parents opt to send their kids to private schools.   

[ηєω ƒяσηтιєя]

The Los Angeles Unified School District is only 10% White; Boston Public Schools only 15%. 

Even public schools located in predominantly White neighborhoods (like University High School in Brentwood) are less than 20% White.  It's mostly because rich, White parents opt to send their kids to private schools.   

OK and my statement still stands, lol.

[Del Tachi]

The Los Angeles Unified School District is only 10% White; Boston Public Schools only 15%. 

Even public schools located in predominantly White neighborhoods (like University High School in Brentwood) are less than 20% White.  It's mostly because rich, White parents opt to send their kids to private schools.   

OK and my statement still stands, lol.

Your statement is irrelevant.  Both big city private schools and rural "segregation academies" serve mostly White families in areas where the overwhelming majority of school-aged children are non-White, and thus perpetuate racial segregation.

[ProgressiveModerate]

What worries me more is honestly the rise of pseudo-academic racists on these social media platforms, many verging on eugenics and stuff. Elon Musk has recently been engaging with a lot of these types on X.

[jojoju1998]

How is this different than elite prep academies in the northeast? Or is this just another sh**t on the south while we do the same thing in another way

I think that the main point of the article is that these happen in majority Black areas in the South.

What exactly do you think the demographics of the elite, private schools of Boston or Los Angeles are like compared to their public schools?

Perhaps the more secular elite academies, but the Catholic Prep Schools are in many cases far more diverse than other privates and even publics, https://thetablet.org/catholic-hs-shows-how-diversity-can-be-achieved/

The Cristo Rey High School Network is free for only low income students, and it only serves low income students.

Now this has changed a bit. Many, but not all, but many Catholic Prep Schools have gone down in diversity, but experts in Catholic Education point to other reasons ( especially the decline of nuns and priests that teach for " free ", thus increasing costs.)

[jojoju1998]

This puts the debate over school vouchers in a whole new light for most of us here:

You mean because if there were school vouchers, these schools would be less white?  They aren't "segregation academies" if they have non-white students, as the article admits they do.

Most “Christian” schools in the south were founded by wealthy whites to keep their kids away from black.

1.Wealthy whites don't have to send their kids to black schools because they can just move to places that don't have many black people. Most Christian school families aren't particularly wealthy, certainly not compared to those who go to secular private schools.

An important confounder in all this discussion is that the era of school desegregation coincided to a large degree with the era of school secularization with ending things like teacher-led prayer in school, both results of the Warren Court. So you can't look at a private Christian school that starts in the South in the 60s or 70s and assume that reaction to civil rights must have been the motivation.

 At least for Catholics, many, not all, but many catholic prep schools do cater more to lower income people. So there's that option.

[Fight for Trump]

"Rednecks" by Randy Newman comes to mind.

[Stranger in a strange land]

How is this different than elite prep academies in the northeast? Or is this just another sh**t on the south while we do the same thing in another way

Elite academies in the Northeast at least uphold (or upheld) extremely rigorous academic standards and have extracurricular offerings that rival those of many colleges. That's not the case at segregation academies, where faculty recruitment & standards are lax, often even falling below public schools in the same area. I'm not in favor of either, just pointing out a major difference.

[Pres Mike]

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools.

A lot of parents send their kids to private schools to get away from drugs and gangs, not so much for education reasons

[Born to Slay. Forced to Work.]

As the article said, they are usually worse than public schools.

A lot of parents send their kids to private schools to get away from drugs and gangs, not so much for education reasons

There’s plenty of drugs in private schools. I’m not saying public schools are perfect, but they are better then the private schools in my area

[Fight for Trump]

I have met so many liberal parents who want to move to a whiter suburb "for the schools" because they don't want their kids to go to the perfectly good school in the rich, but more diverse suburb. Northerners look down on the South but they are, in fact, much more scared of racial diversity.