Charter school segregation lawsuit goes to U.S. appeals court
A federal appeals court is set to hear arguments on whether the opening of a charter school in rural Louisiana violated a decades-old desegregation order.
Court briefs state that Greater Grace Charter Academy is in a district west of New Orleans that is 62 percent black. But the school opened with a 93 percent black enrollment.
Louisiana's education board approved the school's charter and U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman allowed the opening last August. He noted the school has a non-discriminatory enrollment policy. He said blocking the opening would punish students who chose to enroll there.
Opponents argue that approving a nearly one-race school "is contrary to the goals of desegregation."
Arguments were scheduled at the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans Tuesday (June 6).
Greater Grace Charter Academy is one of a growing number of public schools operated by independent authorities with permission from state or local education authorities. Greater Grace was granted a charter by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, according to court records.
Feldman's approval for opening was required under state law because the district has been under longstanding desegregation orders since the 1960s, according to the court record.Charter school segregation lawsuit goes to U.S. appeals court | NOLA.com:
