Sunday, April 12, 2009

Desegregation in Peoria Schools



In 1966 when initial planning for desegregation began, minority students were concentrated in 9 of Peoria's 39 schools. Twenty of the city's schools had white enrollments of more than 98 percent, indicating the most minimal percentage of minority students in more than half the city's schools. Four schools were totally white.

The Board fully realized that the Peoria Public Schools must be integrated promptly to insure quality education and equality of educational opportunities for all children.

The plan was quickly put into effect to coincide with the fall 1968 opening of Peoria’s schools. A few incidents of limited physical violence occurred but the Peoria Journal Star, in its account of the desegregation process noted, "There were no major incidents. Busing, at least on a limited basis and as long as it did not involve advantaged whites, seemed to work well in Peoria.

In some respects, the Peoria schools during the 1970s began to look more segregated than even prior to the initiation of desegregation. In 1966 Peoria's minority students were concentrated in nine schools; eight of these schools failed to meet State guidelines because they had an overpopulation of minority students. By the 1975-76 school year, the district had a total of nine schools which had an overpopulation of minority students by State standards.

A central aspect of the "Quality/Equality" plan was the initiation of the middle-school concept and a new building program to improve physical facilities. The building program was tied, in many ways, to local school referenda. However, the "Quality/Equality" plan stated that "the plan...will be implemented regardless of whether new buildings are built and regardless of the outcome of any bond referendum". Nevertheless, school bond referenda have failed on a number of occasions and the middle-school concept has not gone forward.

On January 8, 1976, the Illinois Office of Education announced that Peoria District 150 was not in compliance with State desegregation guidelines. The State found 20 Peoria schools not in compliance and ordered the district to submit detailed desegregation plans. The order noted that failure to do so could result in a loss of funding and further legal action by the State. A new plan from the district has now been received by the State and is currently under review.

Superintendent Harry Whitaker agreed that Peoria's schools should be within the State guidelines, but has also argued that the district should not be made to bus white students to predominantly black schools to achieve this end:

"We believe in integration. There's no question about that," Mr. Whitaker stated, "but we don't believe in integration to the point that we have to move youngsters back and forth. We think that that is going to be detrimental....My goal is not to re-segregate District 150, but, hopefully, to maintain the community as it is now."

Over the years, the city's public housing population has grown increasingly black. Thus, for instance, school desegregation on Peoria’s far south side must now be entirely reprogrammed in light of the high concentration of black families who have moved into the once predominantly white, blue-collar Harrison Homes project, which is located in the area. The middle-school concept (which has not been implemented in Peoria) still offers the potential, through careful planning, for serving as a means of drawing city residents into multiracial living situations as an outgrowth of the involvement and interest of parents in the middle schools. The city's central urban renewal area offers one possible site for new middle-school construction and residential development.

Following its 1976 review of the desegregation status of Peoria's schools, the Illinois Office of Education assigned a consultant to review the school district's desegregation plan. The consultant recommended the closing of the five remaining predominantly black inner-city schools and the busing of students from these schools to largely white schools.

These recommendations were forwarded to the Peoria school district for its consideration and response. The district held public meetings on the proposed closing and found that the community response was overwhelming negative. On January 3, 1977, the school board unanimously rejected the State's recommendations. The State's consultant observed that school closings were but one of many suggested approaches to the problems of desegregating Peoria's schools. On April 14, 1977, the State board of education voted to waive partially its desegregation guidelines for Peoria, and granted the school district an additional 1 year to bring the remaining schools into compliance.

Read the entire report here.