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DISINTEGRATION

BETWEEN 1995 AND 2001, SEVERAL ADDITIONAL SIXTH TO EIGHTH GRADE SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN OPENED.

AT THE SAME TIME, MANY OF THE SCHOOLS FOR SIXTH, SEVENTH AND EIGHTH GRADERS; NO LONGER MEET THE STATE STANDARD OF BEING RACIALLY BALANCED.

IN 1995, ALL MIDDLE SCHOOLERS WERE IN RACIALLY BALANCED SCHOOLS; IN 2001 - 25 PERCENT OF SIXTH THROUGH EIGHTH GRADERS NOT IN A MAGNET PROGRAM WERE IN RACIALLY BALANCED SCHOOLS.

PITTSBURGH PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM AT A GLANCE
ENROLLMENT PERCENTAGE OF AFRICAN AMERICANS
SCHOOLS WITH A NAME CHANGE IDENTIFIED BY A DOUBLE ASTERSK **

1995:
** ALLEGHENY 651 - 63%
ARSENAL 622 - 68%
KNOXVILLE 745 - 34%
GREENWAY 915 - 50%
GLADSTONE 511 - 62%
MILLIONES 671 - 65%
PROSPECT 386 - 52%
REIZENSTEIN 930 - 75%

2001:
** COLUMBUS 496 - 91%
ARSENAL 568 - 80%
KNOXVILLE 396 - 74%
GREENWAY 519 - 49%
GLADSTONE - CLOSED
MILLIONES 674 - 97%
PROSPECT 356 - 27%
REIZENSTEIN 1,127 - 97%

NEW SCHOOLS OPENED IN 2001:
ROONEY 427 - 45.2%
MIFFLIN 123 - 12%
GREENFIELD 120 - 32%
MORNINGSIDE 87 - 32.2%
SUNNYSIDE 93 - 48.4%
SOUTH HILLS 453 - 10.2%
SOUTH BROOK 361 - 10%

NOTE: ACCORDING TO REIZENSTEIN LEADERS THE SCHOOL'S POPULATION LAST YEAR IS CLOSER TO 1,000 INSTEAD OF 1,127, AND FOR CONSISTENCY THE DISTRICT'S OFFICIAL NUMBER'S FOR ALL SCHOOLS WERE USED.

AT ONE POINT EVEN THE SPOKESMAN DOESN'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT RESEGREGRATION IN PITTSBURGH PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

THE CHARMING AND DIGNIFIED PAT CRAWFORD IS THE DISTRICT'S VOICE AND BECAUSE SHES BEEN SPEAKING FOR THE SCHOOLS SINCE THE 1970'S, IT'S UNOFFICIAL HISTORIAN TO BOOT.

"THE ONLY ONE WHO FEELS COMFORTABLE TALKING ABOUT THIS," SHE SAID TENATIVELY - "IS THE SUPERINTENDENT," A SUPERINTENDENT ARRIVED IN PITTSBURGH AFTER ALL THE CHANGES WERE MADE.

EXACTLY 20 YEARS AGO CRAWFORD HEADED UP AN INFORMATION CAMPAIGN FOR THE SCHOOLS DESEGREGATION PLAN OF THE 1980'S THAT SPORTED THE SLOGAN "KNOWING MAKES IT EASIER."

BUT WHEN CRAWFORD HEARS THE NUMBERS, THAT THE DISTRICT HAS UNDONE ITS INTEGRATION - STARTING WITH THE FACT THAT IN 1995 ALL MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS ATTENDING THEIR ASSIGNED SCHOOLS WERE IN RACIALLY BALANCED BUILDINGS, BUT BY 2001, ONLY A QUARTER WERE IN INTEGRATED CLASSROOMS - SHE GASPS.

THOUGH CLOSE OBSERVERS OF THE DISTRICT HAVE GUESSED THAT ITS SCHOOLS BECOME MORE RACIALLY SEPERATE SINCE THE MID 1990'S, AND THAT THIS WAS ACCOMPANIED BY A RESOURCE DISTRIBUTION FAVORING WHITES - CITY PAPER HAS ANALYZED THE DISTRICT'S RAW DATA, TO PROVIDE DOCUMEMTATION OF THE TREND FOR THE FIRST TIME.

IT'S RESEGREGATION SAYS BETTE HUGHES, HEAD OF THE PITTSBURGH COUNCIL OF EDUCATION, A PUBLIC SCHOOL ADVOCACY NON-PROFIT.

"WE ARE TAKING A STEP BACK BEFORE THE 80'S."

"THE MIDDLE CLASS BOTH BLACK AND WHITE MAY HAVE LEFT SOME OF THESE LARGER SCHOOLS."

YOU HAVE POORER POPULATIONS THAT CAN'T DO THAT, AND CAN'T MOVE OUT OF THE CITY.

IN OUR CITY, THAT PLAYS OUT RACIALLY.

THE DISTRICT'S SLOGAN IN THE MID 90'S WAS "ATTRACT AND HOLD."

SINCE 1995 NINE "NEIGHBORHOOD" SCHOOL'S WERE BUILT, PURCHASED OR MODIFIED BY VOTE OF THE SCHOOL BOARD IN AN ATTEMPT TO KEEP WHITES AND THE MIDDLE CLASS IN THE CITY'S MIDDLE SCHOOLS.

SOME OF THESE NEW SCHOOLS ARE RACIALLY BALANCED, BUT OTHERS ARE MOSTLY ENTIRELY WHITE.

BY DRAWING AWAY MORE WHITE STUDENTS THAN BLACKS FROM PREVIOUS ATTENDANCE PATTERN'S, THE NEW FACILITIES TIP THE RACIAL BALANCE OF THE EIGHT OLDER MIDDLE SCHOOLS MOSTLY TOWARD BLACK - AND SOMETIMES - POORER STUDENT POPULATIONS.

JUST AS THE NEIGHBORHOOD-SCHOOLS ADVOCATES HAVE PREDICTED, THESE NEW AND MODIFIED SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN POPULAR: THEY'VE FILLED UP, IN SOME CASES TO THE POINT OF NEEDING ADDISIONS.

SEEMINGLY THEY'VE MET A MARKET DEMAND.

BUT, WHAT HAPPENS TO A DISTRICT WHEN RESOURCES AND POLICY ARE DIRECTED TOWARD APPEASING THOSE WHO, GENERALLY SPEAKING, ARE ALREADY MORE PRIVILEGED: WHITES AND THE MIDDLE CLASS ?

WILL THIS UNDERMINE THE DISTRICT, OR SAVE IT ?

IN 2002, THE WORD "INTEGRATION" SOUNDS A LITTLE LIKE IT CAME FROM A TIME CAPSULE, LIKE "PERMAPRESSED."

BUT WE HAVEN'T STOPPED TALKING ABOUT INTEGRATION, BECAUSE WE'VE SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF SEGREGRATION.

TO THE CONTRARY: UNLIKE OTHER WIDELY ACCEPTED 20TH. CENTURY EXPERIMENTS, LIKE SOCIAL SECURITY, UNENPLOYMENT COMPENSATION, AND THE MINIMUM WAGE, INTEGRATION - OFTEN BY COURT ORDER IN INDIVIDUAL DISTRICT - HAS NOT BECOME ORTHODOX PUBLIC POLICY.

EVEN THE NATIONAL NAACP, WHICH LED THE CHARGE FOR INTEGRATED SCHOOLS IN THE FIRST PLACE, IS NOW AMBIVALENT ON THE ISSUE.

THIS FALL WILL BE THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DISTRICT'S "VOLUMTARY" DESEGREGATION PLAN, WHICH IT DEVELOPED IN 1982 AFTER 14 YEARS OF FOOT-DRAGGING AND UNDER THREAT OF COURT ORDER.

BUT, ASIDE FROM THE CITY'S POPULAR INTEGRATED MAGNET SYSTEM, MANY OF THE DESEGREGRATION CHANGES HAVE NOW BEEN REVERSED, THANKS TO "NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS."

THE IDEA OF NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS SOUNDS AS WHOLESOME AS AN ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW MARATHON, BUT THE ARGUMENT FOR THEM HAS NEVER EXISTED IN A VACUUM.

CONSIDERING THAT MOST BIG CITIES CONTINUE TO HAVE RACE-AND-CLASS SEGREGATED NEIGHBORHOODS, THE CALL FOR NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS HAS BUMPED SQUARELY AGAINST THE DESIRE FOR INTEGRATION, WHAT WE NOW CALL "DIVERSITY."

IN PITTSBURGH, THE LATEST SKIRMISH REVOLVES AROUND TWO VERY SMALL SCHOOLS THAT, WHILE CLOSED LAST YEAR TO SAVE THE DISTRICT MONEY, WILL LIKELY REOPEN THIS FALL, DESPITE LOW ENROLLMENT AND THE SUPERINTENDENT'S RECOMMENDATION TO THE CONTRARY.

THESE ARE LITTLE SPRING GARDEN ELEMENTARY (PROJECTED AT 56 STUDENTS ENROLLED - FEWER THAN 10 KIDS PER GRADE) AND LITTLER BON AIR (47 STUDENTS).

ARLINGTON MIDDLE SCHOOL, A THIRD NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOL THAT'S ENROLLED AT CAPACITY, WILL ALSO REOPEN WITH 190 STUDENTS.

BUT WITH ENROLLMENTS TOTALING FEWER THAN 300 KIDS - OUT OF THE DISTRICT'S 38,000 STUDENTS - THESE THREE SCHOOLS PLAY A MOSTLY SYMBOLIC ROLE.

FOR THE MOST PART "NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS" HAVE ALREADY WON THE DAY: THE CITY-WRENCHING DEBATES AND REASSIGNMENTS - THAT IS, RESEGREGATIONS - THAT WE NOW LIVE WITH HAPPENED MOSTLY IN 1996, WITH QUIETER DISTRICT MOVES IN SUBSEQUENT YEARS, ESPECIALLY IN 1998.

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