The problem is not diversity, the problem is not enough diversity

Wake County School Board member John Tedesco and his fellow members of the Gang of Five trying to resegregate the schools like to point to the struggles of many poor and African-American students in the system as evidence that the current diversity policy is not working.

There are plenty of reasons why that doesn’t make sense, including one that hasn’t received nearly enough attention. Poor students were making significant progress in Wake County for several years until the number of high poverty schools—defined as having more than 40 percent qualifying for free and reduced lunch—began to increase.

That reinforces the very idea behind the diversity policy, that students perform better in economically diverse schools than they do in high poverty schools.

The problem is not the diversity policy. The problem is that the school system has not been vigilant enough about maintaining it.

That was the point made at least week’s public hearing by former Board of Education Chair John Gilbert.  Too bad he is still not in charge. Watch it.