Finding Integrated Schools? Latino Families Settle in Diverse Suburbs, 2000–2015

Abstract

Diverse Latino families continue to settle in suburbs, hunting for better neighborhoods and educational opportunities. But do they discover more integrated schools relative to segregated city schools? We find that Latino children attending suburban elementary schools were exposed to a greater share of White peers nationwide between 2000 and 2015 than were Latinos attending urban schools. But exposure to White peers in suburbs declined on average during the period. Demographic forces within suburban districts, especially rising family poverty, contribute to worsening segregation of Latino children, as do institutional features. Districts enrolling fewer children and increasing spending per pupil remained more integrated during the period, as identified by two-level fixed-effect (Mundlak) estimation. Many heavily White districts served growing shares of Latino children without losing White families.