Are Whites Still "Fleeing"? Racial Patterns and Enrollment Shifts in Urban Public Schools, 1987-1996

Charles Clotfelter ()

No 7290, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: The effect of interracial contact in public schools on the enrollment of whites has been an important concern in assessments of desegregation since the 1970s. It has been feared that 'white flight' -- meaning exit from or avoidance of racially mixed public schools -- could undermine the racial contact that desegregation policy seeks to enhance. This study examines this question using recent data. It also expands coverage from large urban districts to entire metropolitan areas, paying attention to the spatial context within which enrollment decisions are made. To do so, it examines data for 1987 and 1996 on racial composition and enrollment in all schools and school districts in 238 metropolitan areas. The study finds that white losses appear to be spurred both by interracial contact in districts where their children attend school and by the opportunities available in metropolitan areas for reducing that contact. Implications for metropolitan segregation are examined.

JEL-codes: I2 R2 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1999-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu, nep-his and nep-lab
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Published as Clotfelter, Charles T. "Are Whites Still Fleeing? Racial Patterns And Enrollment Shifts In Urban Public Schools, 1987-1996," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 2001, v20(2,Spring), 199-221.

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