Why Context Matters in School Choice: Exploring Spatial Patterns and Student Mobility in a Mixed-Income Housing Development

Background and Purpose:

While research has examined housing relocation among families experiencing displacement in mixed-income housing initiatives, school relocations have yet to be explored. Research suggests that many original residents in mixed-income initiatives, like the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative (CNI) experience permanent displacement. Therefore, examining school relocations is essential to understand students’ opportunities to learn. Given the importance of schools in determining housing relocations and the growth of choice-based educational environments (e.g., charter/magnet schools), school relocations represent an essential line of critical inquiry. Our research questions are: What are the spatial patterns of students who relocate schools during CNI redevelopment with regards to race and socio-economic status?; Is attending a CNI partnering school and receiving case management services associated with relocating schools?; Among students who relocate schools, how does attending a CNI partnering school and receiving case management services impact changes in school composition?; How do CNI families with school-age children experience the school relocation process?

Methods:

We explore school choice within one mixed-income initiative, South City CNI in Memphis. We utilize an explanatory mixed-methods design, including administrative data on school relocation and in-depth interviews with CNI residents (n =16) and staff (n=5) to understand barriers and opportunities to school choice. We use geospatial origin-destination maps to understand the spatial patterns of school choice with regards to race/ethnicity, and socio-economic status. Second, we use panel regression methods, including hazard and multinomial regression models, to understand the likelihood of relocating schools for students who attend CNI partnering schools and receive case management services during redevelopment. We explore compositional effects associated with attending CNI partnering schools and receiving case management services among those who relocate. Third, we use qualitative interviews with residents to understand the opportunities and barriers families face during redevelopment and how these impact school relocation decisions.

Results:

Findings suggest that students were more likely to transfer to schools with similar neighborhood racial and socio-economic characteristics. Finding also indicated that attending a CNI school was associated with increased odds of relocating schools, potentially reflecting displacement. Case management services buffered these effects, helping students remain in their original schools. For students who relocated, we found that attending a CNI school was associated with transferring to a more racially isolated and financially distressed school. However, these moves were simultaneously associated with attending higher performing schools. Case management services were not associated with higher performing schools. Qualitative interviews with residents suggest that family support, neighborhood composition, and social networks inform their choices.

Conclusion and Implications:

Our findings illuminate the importance of case management services in identifying, choosing, and ultimately transferring to a new school. The social supports introduced through the CNI facilitate families in making school choice decisions which could also mean remaining in their home schools. Families weigh multiple factors in selecting schools including neighborhood and school contexts. Understanding how low-income families make such choices can lead to better policy interventions to disrupt neighborhood and school segregation.