Chapter 3: Equitable Public Education: “Getting Lost in the Shuffle”

In Milliken v. Bradley (1977) the Supreme Court affirmed a district court’s opinion that the desegregation plan for Detroit Public Schools required additional expenditures by the state of Michigan and the Detroit School Board to address the consequences of racial segregation. In an earlier opinion, the Court ruled against mandating a metropolitan desegregation plan, and, instead, directed the district, state, and lower court to determine an alternative remedy. That remedy focused on improving the educational opportunities afforded elementary and secondary public school students in Detroit, primarily through the enhancement of educational services and programs monitored by the district court, until such a time that public school students in Detroit attained a level of educational accomplishment that they could conceivably have achieved if racial segregation between the city and surrounding suburbs had not been permitted (Nelson, 2007).