Incidents of racially motivated violence have inspired many colleges and universities to enact discriminatory harassment policies. Little work has been done, however, to explore the cognitive structures (or structures of expectation) informing relations between groups. This research used interviews and group sessions to examine the nature of race…

The decision to open Oberlin College (Ohio) to black students in 1835, two years after its founding, is discussed. The decision challenged both laws and common perceptions of blacks, and was a milestone in black educational history. Two crucial factors in the decision are identified: Oberlin's founding principles and its economic future. The…

The campus experiences of 24 students of color at a large, predominantly white midwestern university were investigated using four focus groups and grounded theory methods of analysis. Participants were asked about their experiences in four area environments: classrooms, residence halls, student services and programs, and the city where the…

This paper describes an agency working with children, teenagers, and families in inner-city St. Louis neighborhoods. Its programs included all the social work specializations--casework, community development, and group work--which interacted in a holistic approach. Poverty was one common denominator among all the neighborhoods served. Youth clubs…

The Brown decision of 1954 was the product of a planned program of litigation begun in the late 1920s and the early 1930s by a group of Black lawyers. Their work would not have succeeded if the ethos of the United States had not been changing simultaneously. The growth of a climate more conducive to civil rights is reflected in the presidential…

Considerable disagreement remains between white and black Americans as to what are permissible and effective policies for the desegregation of public education. Research findings exist to support almost every point of view, and desegregation strategies tend to reflect the social beliefs and educational assumptions of those in power. Efforts made…

This study examined strategies perceived by school and community representatives as effective in integrating desegregated schools; that is, improving race relations and fostering an atmosphere for equal educational opportunity. The effectiveness of school desegregation strategies and demographic and historical factors of the community are…

Examines the effects of middle school organizational structure on students' interracial and cross-sex communication patterns emphasizing Allport's contact theory, i.e., does structure affect the frequency with which students talk to other-race classmates? Indicates schools can structure curricula to improve majority-minority interactions.…

This paper addresses challenges involved in assessing and negotiating multiple viewpoints of one rural school district in the Southern Rural School system after desegregation. The SRSS Board of Education and the local superintendent were charged with ensuring that school employment and educational environments were conducive to working and…

The questions of what a school system must show in order to be declared "desegregated" continue to be defined by the Supreme Court. This paper presents an overview of the original "Brown v. Board of Education" decision and the large body of case law that has evolved from it. Although over 500 school districts have been ordered…

The most important education issue in terms of the volume of court cases and the impact on education has been racial isolation in schools. For decades the thrust has been on integrating the schools, but this goal has not been accomplished. Desegregation efforts have been frustrated and the problem of providing a quality education for all students…

In dealing with racial tension and conflict, the principal is not limited to a wing and a prayer and benign neglect. The roots of conflict can be identified. Conflict can be planned for and utilized constructively. For 10 years, in approximately 2,000 instances, conciliators and mediators of the Community Relations Service have stood side-by-side…

This document examines the results of a law education workshop designed to change teacher attitudes on various aspects of legal-ethical behavior. One hundred and eight Atlanta elementary and secondary school teachers were pre and postested on nine attitudes. These include attitudes toward (1) teacher conduct in a situation leading to bodily harm…

In the 1950's, Charles S. Johnson, the first black president of Fisk University (Tennessee), greatly expanded the institution's international program, attracting many foreign students to the school and creating a milieu that gave American blacks the benefits of integration. This paper examines how the presence of outsiders and outside influences…

Three generations of children have passed through the Baton Rouge (Louisiana) school system since the "Brown" decision (1954) and one generation since the federal court's 1981 desegregation order. The impact of school desegregation on African American children was studied in the East Baton Rouge School District. For the student body as a…