School Choice and Stratification in a Regional Context: Examining the Role of Inter-District Choice
Peabody Journal of Education: Issues of Leadership, Policy, and Organizations - Vol. 84, No. 2
Jennifer Jellison Holme, The University of Texas at Austin
Meredith P. Richards, The University of Texas at Austin
ABSTRACT
Despite the growing popularity of inter-district choice plans over the past decade, the policy assumptions underlying their adoption have been subjected to very little empirical research. This study situates school choice within one metropolitan region, Denver, and examines the ways in which choice patterns relate to existing patterns of stratification between school districts. This regional focus offers insight into the patterns of inter-district choice and the influence these patterns have on equity within a metropolitan region. Findings from this study indicate that relatively higher income students were more likely to take advantage of inter-district choice, and that choice was more often used by students to exit from a less advantaged context (as measured by socioeconomic status) to a relatively more advantaged one. The article concludes with recommendations for policymakers in designing more equity-minded choice policies.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Jennifer Jellison Holme is an Assistant Professor of Educational Policy and Planning in the Department of Educational Administration at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research focuses on the politics and implementation of educational policy, with a particular focus on the relationship between school reform, equity, and diversity in schools. Dr. Holme received her B.A. in Sociology from UCLA, her Ed.M. in Administration, Planning and Social Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and her Ph.D. in Educational Policy from UCLA.
Meredith Paige Richards is a doctoral student in Educational Policy and Planning at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research interests focus on the regional and metropolitan context of education, the role of schools in social stratification and segregation, and cognitive perspectives in educational policy implementation.
