Racism Decried in Sacramento School Closings
Courthouse News Service
SACRAMENTO (CN) - The Sacramento city school district ignored a report that recommended closing four schools in wealthy white neighborhoods and closed seven schools in poor minority neighborhoods instead, eight families and three PTA groups say in a constitutional complaint in Federal Court.
The eight families, with 11 children in school, and PTAs from Joseph Bonnheim Elementary School, Clayton B. Wire Elementary School, and Maple Elementary School sued the Sacramento City Unified School District, Superintendent Jonathan Raymond, and four members of the school board.
The plaintiffs claim Sacramento U.S.D.'s decision to close seven elementary schools in minority neighborhoods "was motivated by racially discriminatory intent and purpose," in violation of constitutional rights to equal protection.
The school board formed a committee in November 2010 to determine which schools to consolidate and close. After studying the issue from April through August 2011, "and, applying the board's detailed criteria and utilizing the Best Practices contained in the California Education Code, Sections 17387-17391, recommended the closure/consolidation of four elementary schools. The schools recommended for closure/consolidation were in older, affluent neighborhoods and the schools affected each had a 'white' student body in excess of 40 percent of the enrolled students," according to the complaint.
It continues: "The superintendent and the Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education rejected the recommendations of the committee because of the unacceptable impact on schools in influential, affluent, white neighborhoods and eschewed the criteria which led to the unacceptable resulti