Beyond Zelman: Reinventing Neighborhood Schools

From the time Brown v. Board of Education1 was decided in 1954, all branches of the federal government have sought ways to create an public education for all students. The judiciary has played a pivotal role in this search for equality, with the U.S. Supreme Court taking the lead. Brown overturned but equal, the policy set forth in Plessy v. Ferguson,2 because the Supreme Court determined that separate facilities were inherently unequal.3 Although Brown laid the groundwork for integration, it did not speak in terms of remedies; thus, little in the way of implementing segregation was accomplished immediately after the decision. It was not until the 1970s, with cases such as Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg,4 that meaningful remedies could be implemented regarding the Brown decision and integration. Swann was one of the first cases to uphold busing in furtherance of integrated public These busing decisions experimented with the idea that equality is the key to a meaningful public education. It has been more than three decades since the busing decisions were handed down, yet public schools are still failing. Now is the time to find alternative, meaningful solutions. The idea of an education, alone, has not helped public schoolchildren. Students of all ages are still failing, even those inner-city students who have to ride a bus three hours daily to the so-called white schools. The American psyche needs an overhaul. Equality and integration alone will not make the American public school system better; it must also include a quality education. In Zelman v. Simmons-Harris,5 the Supreme Court first recognized the necessity of meaningful alternatives for the parents of students in failing public school systems. The Court concluded that a voucher program, completely neutral with respect to religion, was a viable alternative that would provide individuals with a wide range of benefits.6 The purpose of this Chalk Talk is to provide an overview of the monumental cases that led to the Zelman decision, followed by a discussion of the policy surrounding Zelman. Finally, and most importantly, this note will discuss another alternative to government-mandated busing: neighborhood I. THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM'S LEGAL HISTORY education is perhaps the most important function of state and local governments. It is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education.7 These powerful words were expressed fifty years ago, in the first Brown decision. Education has always held the keys to success and the U.S. Supreme Court understood this idea when it wrote Brown. Today, these words still ring true. In Brown, but equal was struck down because there was no place for segregation in a public school setting, particularly when separate facilities really were not equal.8 The court announced that such state-mandated segregation violated the protection guaranteed by law.9 Although this decision struck down the separate but principles that had been engrained in the American public school system since its inception, it offered no suggestions on how to integrate the The Court understood that it would take time for the American public to adjust to the idea of an integrated public school system, which could be why it did nothing more in the original Brown decision. The Court took another step forward in Brown II,10 approximately one year later. Although there had been progress in some states, it was negligible when compared to the Court's ultimate vision. The Court stated there would be no tolerance for federal, state, or local laws that refused to hold segregation in public school systems unconstitutional.11 Next, the court stated local school districts would still control the desegregation process, but would be under state court supervision.12 If the districts could not or, more likely, would not, integrate, the courts would step in and take over the process. …