Income Disparity & Ethnic Populations

Yesterday, I posted a blog that looked at the fifteen school districts in King County and isolated four that seemed like good candidates for Washington State Student Improvement Grants.  The focus was income disparity and seven districts were isolated as having 50% or more of their student populations on “Free & Reduced Lunch”.   Among the data collected there was information on the ethnic make up of the district’s student population. 

Of the seven districts isolated, five had larger populations of white students than any other specific classification, of which two were white majority populations.  One had a larger Asian/Pacific Islander population and one had a larger Hispanic population

White student populations ranged from 80.6% to 15.4%; Asian/Pacific Islander student populations ranged from 31.9% to 0%; Hispanic student populations ranged from 36.5% to 19.8%; and Black student populations ranged from 19.5% to 0%. 

This data suggests to me that using “Income Disparity” is a racially neutral qualifier.  That supports my original proposal, which sought to select a qualifier that would avoid judicial prohibitions on programs with racial preferences.

Therefore, I once again challenge the Washington State Legislature to create a “Washington State Student Improvement Grant” program that uses income disparity, identified by Free and Reduced Lunch percentages, to determine school districts and schools that qualify for assistance. 

Washington state’s success with Federal Student Improvement Grants makes it clear that we know how to apply these additional resources effectively.