K-12 Education

We are committed to generating and synthesizing research on key civil rights and equal opportunity policies that have been neglected or overlooked.

Twenty-First Century Color Lines: Multiracial Change in Contemporary America

Twenty-First Century Color Lines offers a wide variety of new perspectives about moving from the traditional racial issues of the U.S. toward an understanding of a vastly more complex multiracial setting.

The Forgotten Choice? Rethinking Magnet Schools in a Changing Landscape

Historically, magnet schools have been an important part of school districts' efforts to improve equity and quality in our nation's schools and enroll twice as many students as charter schools. But as charters – created without fundamental civil rights considerations - have become a central focus of school choice proponents, federal funds for magnet schools have been frozen. A new report, The Forgotten Choice? Rethinking Magnet Schools in a Changing Landscape, looks at the policy effects of neglecting magnet schools.

Building on Success: Educational Diversity and Equity in Kentucky Higher Education

This comprehensive study of equity in the entire Kentucky system not only assesses the state's progress under plans developed to comply with federal civil rights law over the past 26 years, but also recommends strategies for the next generation.

Proposition 227 in California: A Long-Term Appraisal of Its Impact on Language Minority Student Achievement

For almost ten years now, school districts and more importantly English learners have felt the impact of Prop 227’s policy change. A number of research reports have attempted to analyze the impact of Prop 227 with varying methods and findings. In most cases, the reports relied on achievement data that straddled three different standardized tests, the Stanford-9 Achievement Test (SAT-9), the California Achievement Tests, Sixth Edition Survey (CAT-6), and the California Standards Test (CST). This study uses five years of CST data to examine Prop 227’s impact on English learner achievement.

The Dropout Crisis in the Northwest: Confronting the Graduation Rate Crisis in All Communities with Special Focus on American Indian and Alaska Native Students

On May 30, 2008, The Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles organized its seventh conference calling attention to our nation's graduation and dropout crisis. "The Dropout Crisis in the Northwest: Confronting the Graduation Rate Crisis in All Communities with Special Focus on American Indian and Alaskan Native Students" was held for the first time in the Pacific Northwest at the University of Washington in Seattle. The purpose of the conference was to galvanize regional and local efforts to confront the school dropout crisis and to generate an ongoing national conversation about the policy changes needed in order for schools and communities to ensure that every student receives the educational opportunities leading to successful high school graduation and beyond.

Resource Needs for English Learners: Getting Down to Policy Recommendations

This resource guide sets the foundation of English Learners in California and identifies seven factors that manifest an inferior education for this population of students. Relevant policy recommendations discuss a variety of factors from funding, accountability, infrastructure and teacher training and development.

Still Looking to the Future: Voluntary K-12 School Integration

Honoring the nation's celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, The CRP/PDC and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) release Still Looking to the Future: Voluntary K-12 School Integration; A Manual for Parents, Educators and Advocates. This Second Edition of The Manual provides valuable guidance and information about how communities and school districts can promote racial diversity and address racial isolation in schools nationwide