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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It’s worth clarifying a few things here. Co-ed schools do indeed aim for gender parity, but the analogy to race and income isn’t as straightforward. Independent schools in the D.C. region (and nationally) have long faced a dual challenge: increasing racial and ethnic diversity and expanding socioeconomic access. Research shows that without intentional efforts, diversity by race often becomes concentrated among families of similar, affluent income brackets—precisely what you’re observing.

The policy question isn’t whether “affirmative action” is necessary in private schools—it’s whether schools that claim to value diversity are structuring admissions and financial aid in ways that align with that goal. Nationally, private schools rely heavily on tuition-driven models, which creates a structural bias toward higher-income families, regardless of race. Simply enrolling a racially diverse but economically homogenous student body risks creating what scholars sometimes call “cosmetic diversity”: visible variation without the deeper benefits of class, cultural, and life-experience diversity.

You raise an important point about discretion. Schools do exercise latitude in how they recruit—sometimes emphasizing African American representation, sometimes Asian, sometimes Latino. That variation reflects institutional histories, donor influence, and local demographics, but it does underscore the lack of a transparent or standardized approach. In other words, what you call “discretion” is a byproduct of each school navigating competing priorities—mission, market pressures, and financial sustainability.

So the fairer framing might not be: “Should private schools stop using race as a factor?” but rather: “How can private schools ensure that racial diversity initiatives are coupled with genuine socioeconomic diversity, so that these institutions mirror the broader community more closely?” From a research perspective, we know that students benefit—academically, socially, and civically—when schools achieve both.[/quote]

Agree 👏. Schools should promote opportunities for capable low income kids. Just admitting non-white upper income families doesn’t mechanically implies a diverse school. It’s more of a “cosmetic”!diversity as you mentioned. [/quote]

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