School Closure: A Thin Conceptualization of Equity

Our research question asks what is the impact of school closure when employed as a strategy for school reform? This question was first raised by Cleveland youth within participatory action research and sustained in a multi-method research design including autoethnography, survey, and analysis of state data. Findings from autoethnographic data revealed the theme of eviction, while survey data underscored student mobility, transportation, and relational challenges. An analysis of state data revealed students attending a receiving school were less likely to graduate on time, more likely to experience a disciplinary event, and more likely to be identified as having cognitive, learning, and emotional disabilities. Our challenge was to trace the arguments for school closure as informed by equity-driven legislation, policy, and philanthropy. Our analysis reveals the concentration of students displaced by school closure in receiving schools reflecting racial and economic isolation. Also evident is the disproportionate number of students with disabilities in receiving schools. By reinserting context into the analytical frame, the research reveals a thin conceptualization of equity evident in this policy. School closure as a reform strategy within equity driven arguments fails to fully grasp the dehumanizing conditions at work for youth, their families, and their neighborhoods.