Michael Keating
Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Mindy Adnot
In 1971, Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Ed. highlighted the failure of the CMS system to offer equal, desegregated education opportunities to all of the county’s residents. Now almost 50 years after the landmark Supreme Court decision, Charlotte-Mecklenburg still possesses a highly segregated schooling system that inherently places students of color at a disadvantage to pursue upward mobility. This research looked into the leading factors of these disadvantages, attempting to look at achievement checkpoints as individuals progress from elementary students to—potentially—college graduates.
Using data from the Quality of Life Explorer, observations were made to compare the racial breakdown of areas within the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area and how the average educational achievement of these neighborhoods may correspond to their racial makeup.