“It was an audacious idea 10 years ago – that charter schools can and should be one of the strongest tools available to increase diversity in student populations – but one that attracted like-minded leaders.”

Looking at the state of public education in 2023, are we where we should be? The question of who goes to which school remains pivotal to students’ and families’ lives and to their communities. It’s a fundamental question that is still difficult to answer when asked with educational equity in mind.

In the 1960s Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) spoke of a Beloved Community and the idea of a truly interracial democracy; President Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) shared his vision for a Great Society wherein every child can find knowledge to enrich (their) mind and to enlarge (their) talents. These leaders envisioned a nation where Americans of diverse backgrounds would live and thrive together. Fast forward to today, our nation is still segregated and polarized. This is happening at the same time as our nation’s youngest generations are the most diverse they have ever been; our reality is a far cry from the vision of the 60’s.

What can we do to bring these visions closer to reality? At Diverse Charter Schools Coalition (DCSC), we believe we have an answer. DCSC works to realize the shared visions of MLK and LBJ by supporting and expanding diverse charter schools, schools wherein all students and their communities reap the benefits of a diverse and inclusive education. Since its founding in 2014, DCSC believed in this vision. It was an audacious idea 10 years ago – that charter schools can and should be one of the strongest tools available to increase diversity in student populations – but one that attracted like-minded leaders. Today, the bold idea behind DCSC is a growing reality. DCSC is helping public schools successfully counter segregation and advance equity by developing intentional and inclusive school communities.

At DCSC, we believe diversity goes beyond student demographics and should be reflected by everyone in the building —from the students to the teachers to administrators. Intentional diversity goes far beyond simply enrolling students of different races, wealth levels, and other socioeconomic markers; it embraces a deepening understanding of an inclusive school community. Too often desegregation focused only on where students attended school, which led to students often experiencing separate and unequal education under the same roof. We’re working to help schools not just attain diverse enrollment, staff, and leadership, but foster inspiring communities where students can form bonds that cross boundaries, learn from one another, and together develop a vision for their shared world.

DCSC began as a group of 14 dedicated charter school leaders, policy experts, and researchers of intentionally diverse schools and has grown over 10 years to an alliance of 92 members, representing over 242 schools in 24 states and DC, educating over 100,00 students across the country. Not only are DCSC members dedicated to the just vision of intentional integration, but they also believe in the academic benefits to all students in their schools. Eighty percent of DCSC member schools’ students outperformed their neighborhood district in English Language Arts, and 82% of member schools’ students outperformed their neighborhood district in math, (based on most recently available state assessments data).

As we reflect on the past 10 years of DCSC – on our membership growth, new intentional diverse schools launched by our UnifiED fellows, and educators learning via communities of practice – we must also look to the ongoing and future efforts of our members and the Coalition.

Finding solutions to the persistent problem of segregation remains fundamental to justice and opportunity in this country — and in an increasingly diverse nation, it’s more pressing than ever. At DCSC, our work has only just begun.

Thank you,