Miles to Go: The State of Education for Black Students in America
This report from the Southern Education Foundation offers an overview of education data gathered for Black students in the United States, including students enrolled in early childhood, K–12, and postsecondary education. The report identifies a range of opportunity gaps (limits to some students’ opportunities to learn and succeed educationally), including disproportionately low access to rigorous coursework, less funding in K–12 school districts that serve high numbers of Black students, increasing racial segregation in schools, disproportionate school discipline practices, and low college enrollment and graduation rates. The report details opportunity gaps at every level of the education system, highlighting disparities from early childhood education to postsecondary education and providing recommendations for ways educators and policymakers can improve education for students going forward. This report includes important research and implications for all stakeholders involved in the education system, but it would be particularly helpful for teachers and leader candidates preparing to enter school districts with high concentrations of Black students.