Academic decline is most common among Black students who attend public schools in cities as opposed to students who attend suburban schools (Cotton, 1991; Ladd, 2012). Appeals to rectify the urban/suburban achievement gap have resulted in several federal and state policy reforms that target Black and urban schools (Henig et al., 1999). Revolving education reforms cause more harm than good when these strategies fail to acknowledge the non-academic roles schools play in supporting Black communities. Research by Anyon (1997) and Orr (1999) finds that schools are sources of economic stability in deindustrialized urban/Black cities. The literature on Black political participation finds that low-income Black communities have higher rates of political apathy and lower numbers of political engagement, except in the governance of their schools (Fung, 2009). Other research suggests that urban schools are also sites for social welfare services (Gordon, 2023). Using a multi-year, mix-methods study of city schools in the Midwest and Northeast regions of the United States, this research finds that social problems like concentrated poverty have stressed municipal capacity in cities while exacerbating intra-dependence between urban, Black communities and their schools – the most fiscally stable institutions in deindustrialized cities. Non-educational needs (i.e., employment, social welfare, and political services, etc.) that are normally carried out by external agencies are now school managed programs. When education reforms mandate the elimination of staff, programs, services, or processes, the school ecosystem is disrupted and results in community decline.

Authors:
Antonia Gordon, Michigan State University, United States

About the Presenter(s)
Antonia “Toni” Gordon is fourth-year doctoral student in Political Science Department at Michigan State University. She is also predoctoral fellow with the Center for Urban Research and Education at Rutgers University - Camden Campus.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

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