By Bill Raack, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – With the approach of the 50th anniversary of the landmark Brown versus Board of Education decision, opinions still vary on the impact of the ruling.
The chairman of Washington University's Department of Education, William Tate, says the case was an important remedy to desegregation in public schools.
However, "we can look at multiple indicators to suggest that the Brown decision didn't result in uniform equal opportunity or, as I like to say, high quality education for all students in the United States. That's just not a reality today," Tate says.
Tate says the reasons why educational opportunities have not improved to a greater degree for minorities vary from city to city. But he believes there is still a lack of civic commitment to do so in many communities.
The landmark ruling in May of 1954 ended segregation according to race and cleared the way for black students to attend schools of their choice.
"It failed because we forgot there's this sociocultural thing that happens inside of a school," Tate added. "So you can be a segregated as you were living across town right within the same building."
Tate says part of the solution is better-prepared teachers, high standards for curriculum and the support of an adequate fiscal policy.