It has been 50 years since magnet schools were first used to address segregation in public schools. The context of magnet schools has changed dramatically during this time, raising questions about the role of magnet schools in a modern context. This study utilized data from a large urban district with more than 100 magnet schools to assess…

Despite their long history and importance in the American curriculum, music programs must constantly justify their place in the twenty-first century. Urban areas that are economically depressed sometimes may not be able to offer music instruction due to the emphasis on raising test scores as well as unfavorable economic conditions that may limit…

Martha Urioste tells a compelling history of public sector Montessori in Denver, from its socially charged beginnings in the 1960s to 2009. She played a huge role in creating the first public Montessori school in Colorado that was launched as an integration model with bilingual classes and staff. This inspirational story begins with her early…

Connecticut's interdistrict magnet schools offer a model of choice-based desegregation that appears to satisfy current legal constraints. This study presents evidence that interdistrict magnet schools have provided students from Connecticut's central cities access to less racially and economically isolated educational environments and estimates…

Mergers of city school districts with surrounding ones lead to the dilemma of whether or not to bus children out of their neighborhoods. A review of recent desegregation litigation shows that courts still require the elimination of inequalities, but busing is not mandatory. Alternatives such as magnet schools are encouraged. (VM)

Conventional school desegregation techniques have failed because they do not redress the root causes of segregation. An alternative approach, controlled choice, maximizes personal choice within an equitable, educationally enhanced system. This approach has been adopted by three school systems and is being reviewed by several more. (VM)

This transcript of a Congressional hearing concerns improving and strengthening the quality of education in Boston and other cities. The testimony centers around the systemwide planning process that has established the Boston Plan for Excellence in the Public Schools and the incentive programs that have been implemented. A major issue is federal…