Schools & Metropolitan Inequity:Education and Markets in the Late 20th Century

History of Education SocietyOctober 2007

The Rise of “Shopping for Schools”

in Suburbia

Jack DoughertyEducational Studies Program

&Cities, Suburbs, and Schools Project

Trinity College, Hartford CT

October 2007

Historical argument:

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

-- “Shopping” and “selling” intentionally linked purchase of private homes with perceived better public schools

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

-- “Shopping” and “selling” intentionally linked purchase of private homes with perceived better public schools

-- Major role in transforming physical space and legal boundaries into what we recognize today as suburbia

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

-- “Shopping” and “selling” intentionally linked purchase of private homes with perceived better public schools

-- Major role in transforming physical space and legal boundaries into what we recognize today as suburbia

Why does this

matter?

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

-- “Shopping” and “selling” intentionally linked purchase of private homes with perceived better public schools

-- Major role in transforming physical space and legal boundaries into what we recognize today as suburbia

Why does this

matter?

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

-- “Shopping” and “selling” intentionally linked purchase of private homes with perceived better public schools

-- Major role in transforming physical space and legal boundaries into what we recognize today as suburbia

Why does this

matter?

- Suburban histories rarely mention schools; when they do, misleading time compression

Historical argument: -- Middle-class Americans increasingly engaged in “shopping for schools” during latter 20th century

-- “Shopping” and “selling” intentionally linked purchase of private homes with perceived better public schools

-- Major role in transforming physical space and legal boundaries into what we recognize today as suburbia

Why does this

matter?

- Suburban histories rarely mention schools; when they do, misleading time compression

- Suburban schools were not a strong magnet in early 1950s, but became one by 1960s & ‘70s

A Suburban Case Study: West Hartford, Connecticut, from 1920s to 2000s

Population of West Hartford, 1900-2000

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

Phenomenal pre-WW II suburban housing boom

Most building permits for 1- and 2-family homes of any CT municipality, 1922

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

CT Dept of Ed report revealed mediocre school quality

1923

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

CT Dept of Ed report revealed mediocre school quality

High school facility -- “unsatisfactory from practically every standpoint”

1923

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

CT Dept of Ed report revealed mediocre school quality

High school facility -- “unsatisfactory from practically every standpoint”

Elementary schools -- overcrowded that 3 out of 7 ran “illegal” half-day sessions of less than three hours

1923

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

CT Dept of Ed report revealed mediocre school quality

High school facility -- “unsatisfactory from practically every standpoint”

Elementary schools -- overcrowded that 3 out of 7 ran “illegal” half-day sessions of less than three hours

West Hartford 4th Grade Arithmetic scores, 1923

0 5 10 15 20 25

STANDARD

Seymour A

East B

Seymour B

DISTRICT AVG

Elmwood

Center

East A

1923

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

CT Dept of Ed report revealed mediocre school quality

High school facility -- “unsatisfactory from practically every standpoint”

Elementary schools -- overcrowded that 3 out of 7 ran “illegal” half-day sessions of less than three hours

“There seems no good reason for WH schools to be satisfied with merely achieving standard results…”

“Superior schools are the desire of the people.”

West Hartford 4th Grade Arithmetic scores, 1923

0 5 10 15 20 25

STANDARD

Seymour A

East B

Seymour B

DISTRICT AVG

Elmwood

Center

East A

1923

1) WH Schools as Weak Magnets in 1920s

City schools widely recognized as superior over suburban

“Hartford is to be commended for maintaining the ‘gold standard’ of its college preparatory students. . . [its reputation] is widely and favorably known through eastern collegiate circles.” - Strayer survey, 1937

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950s

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sAnxiety about WH educational quality in mid-class suburb

1950

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sAnxiety about WH educational quality in mid-class suburb

1950

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sAnxiety about WH educational quality in mid-class suburb

1950

1951

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sAnxiety about WH educational quality in mid-class suburb

1950

1951

“If we lived in a mill town, where the income level was modest, it would not be startling to find that we could not afford the best in public education.

To document that we have grade B- secondary education available in West Hartford is a shock of another order.”

- West Hartford News, 1951

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sReal estate agents increasingly advertised private homes as access to better-quality public schools

1951

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sReal estate agents increasingly advertised private homes as access to better-quality public schools

1951

During 1954 dispute over redrawing school attendance zones, a West Hartford parent told Board of Ed: “Whenever real estate men sell property, they tell their clients that they (purchasers) are in the Sedgwick, Webster Hill, or Bugbee areas.”

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sReal estate agents increasingly advertised private homes as access to better-quality public schools

1951

During 1954 dispute over redrawing school attendance zones, a West Hartford parent told Board of Ed: “Whenever real estate men sell property, they tell their clients that they (purchasers) are in the Sedgwick, Webster Hill, or Bugbee areas.”

WH school superintendent criticized agents for promoting “social class consciousness”: “Doesn’t it boil down to some people thinking there is more prestige to going to one school than another?”

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sReal estate agents increasingly advertised private homes as access to better-quality public schools

1951

Hartford Courant, May 1, 1960

2) Rise of Selling Homes & Schools, 1950sReal estate agents increasingly advertised private homes as access to better-quality public schools

1951

Percentage of West Hartford home advertisements mentioning a specific school, 1930-

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

1930 1935 1940 1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test Scores

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresState government, suburban real estate agents, and homebuyers all began to embrace school test data

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresState government, suburban real estate agents, and homebuyers all began to embrace school test data

1973 - WH Board of Ed reaffirmed policy of “not releasing school scores on a town-wide basis”

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresState government, suburban real estate agents, and homebuyers all began to embrace school test data

1973 - WH Board of Ed reaffirmed policy of “not releasing school scores on a town-wide basis”

1985 - CT legislature created statewide test, but nouniform system of reporting data

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresState government, suburban real estate agents, and homebuyers all began to embrace school test data

1973 - WH Board of Ed reaffirmed policy of “not releasing school scores on a town-wide basis”

1985 - CT legislature created statewide test, but nouniform system of reporting data

1989 - National School Reporting Services opened in CT;began selling school data to WH realtors

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresState government, suburban real estate agents, and homebuyers all began to embrace school test data

1973 - WH Board of Ed reaffirmed policy of “not releasing school scores on a town-wide basis”

1985 - CT legislature created statewide test, but nouniform system of reporting data

1989 - National School Reporting Services opened in CT;began selling school data to WH realtors

1992 - CT began uniform reporting of test data on paper

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresState government, suburban real estate agents, and homebuyers all began to embrace school test data

1973 - WH Board of Ed reaffirmed policy of “not releasing school scores on a town-wide basis”

1985 - CT legislature created statewide test, but nouniform system of reporting data

1989 - National School Reporting Services opened in CT;began selling school data to WH realtors

1992 - CT began uniform reporting of test data on paper

by 2000 - CT test data more widely accessible on Internet

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresPre-2000: Data available once a year in local newspaper

1951Hartford Courant, Jan 6, 1999

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresPre-2000: Data available once a year in local newspaperPost-2000: Instantly, anywhere, on govt & non-govt sites

1951

Hartford Courant, Jan 6, 1999

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH elem scores higher, wider variation (compared to 1923)Stronger relationship between residence & school quality

1951

West Hartford 4th Grade Math CMT (Percent at/above goal), 2007

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

STATE AVG

Webster Hill Sch

Charter Oak Sch

Smith Sch

Wolcott Sch

Duffy Sch

DISTRICT AVG

Braeburn Sch

Morley Sch

Whiting Lane Sch

Norfeldt Sch

Aiken Sch

Bugbee Sch

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

A 12 percentage point increase in test scores (one standard deviation) is associated with an average home price increase of:

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

A 12 percentage point increase in test scores (one standard deviation) is associated with an average home price increase of:

$2,244 (pre-2000 period)

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

A 12 percentage point increase in test scores (one standard deviation) is associated with an average home price increase of:

$2,244 (pre-2000 period)

$8,060 (post-2000 period) Both expressed in year 2000 dollars

3) Rise of Shopping for School Test ScoresWH buyers paid more for homes in higher-scoring school zones, controlling for house & neighborhood characteristics,

from 1996 to 2005

1951

A 12 percentage point increase in test scores (one standard deviation) is associated with an average home price increase of:

$2,244 (pre-2000 period)

$8,060 (post-2000 period) Both expressed in year 2000 dollars

Test-Price relationship became stronger over time

Historical argument: -- Middle-class “shopping for schools” in late 20th century

-- Intentionally linked private homes with public schools

-- Major role in creation of modern US suburbia

http://www.trincoll.edu/depts/educ/css