New Polling Data Finds Widespread Support For Integrating and Fairly Funding Public Schools

Washington, D.C. —  Ahead of the 70th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, new polling finds that Americans across racial groups and differing levels of education strongly support renewed efforts to integrate and equitably fund public schools.

The national poll of adults conducted by Lake Research Partners on behalf of Brown’s Promise, found widespread support for integrating and fairly funding public schools and showed people are more likely to support integration when they learn that schools are as segregated as they were in the 1960’s.

• A 71% majority of Americans favor “re-organizing school districts to have more racially and economically diverse student bodies and providing more resources to the school districts that serve students who need the most help,” compared to just 12% who oppose.

  • This includes strong majorities (65% and up) across racial groups.

• A 62% majority also favor integration by itself, with 20% opposed.

• Most adults incorrectly think that schools are less segregated than they were in the 1960’s.

• After learning that schools are as racially segregated as they were in the 1960s, a 56% majority say they are more likely to favor integration.

The strong support for integration stems from respondents’ belief that diverse classrooms enhance critical thinking and problem solving skills to prepare children for the diverse workplaces and communities they will encounter as adults.

Strong majorities of respondents also favor of a variety of specific integration policies including:

• Revising how we assign students to school districts so that more students can attend well-resourced school districts. (71% favor, 42% strongly favor)

• Investing in magnet schools that accept students from a large region and provide transportation for those who need it. (73% favor, 41% strongly favor)

• Allowing parents to send their children to schools in nearby districts and provide transportation for those who need it. (74% favor, 45% strongly favor)

“School integration is one the few proven strategies to achieve education equity, but as a country, we’ve sort of dropped it from the conversation, in part because of a misconception that it’s too hard politically,” said Ary Amerikaner, co-founder and Executive Director of Brown’s Promise. “This polling shows that Americans understand the importance of diverse, well-resourced schools. It should serve as a confidence boost to policymakers, educators, and advocates who are ready to restart efforts toward realizing Brown’s promise.”

“Most Americans have no idea just how segregated our schools remain today.. A quality education sets the foundation for a child’s future, and the hard truth is that even today, school segregation greatly impacts school resources—70 years later, separate is still unequal,” said Brown’s Promise co-founder and Chief Legal Counsel Saba Bireda. “We’re already starting to see a shift in attention as we approach the 70th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, and I hope that attention will turn into action as we continue to share this kind of information.”

The survey was designed and administered by Lake Research Partners. It was conducted online from October 27 – November 3, 2023. The survey reached a total of 1000 adults nationwide with additional samples of 100 Black adults, 100 Latine adults, 100 Asian American and Pacific Islander adults and 100 Indigenous adults. You can find a summary of the survey results here.

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Hosted at Southern Education Foundation, Brown’s Promise is fighting to advance educational equity through integration. Brown’s Promise combines research, litigation, advocacy, collaboration, and communications to create schools where children from all backgrounds learn together in excellent, well-resourced, diverse environments led by diverse educators. To learn more about Brown’s Promise, visit www.brownspromise.org/about

Lake Research Partners is a national public opinion and political strategy research firm founded by Celinda Lake in 1995, and the most consistently accurate—and consistently progressive—Democratic research firm in the country. For three consecutive cycles, fivethirtyeight.com rated Lake Research at the top of all Democratic polling firms in terms of accuracy. This independent analysis of pollsters underscores our simultaneous commitment to innovation and rigorous turnout models and sampling methodology. Visit https://www.lakeresearch.com/ to learn more.