District officials say Brown so far has not acted on his threat of a lawsuit or even filed a formal complaint. A key strategy for improving South Seattle schools is the district's new school financing formula, which funnels extra money to the neediest students. High-poverty schools can then hire extra staff, reduce class sizes and provide intensive academic help. The district also has moved some of its strongest principals to high-poverty schools to help boost achievement, Olchefske said. But some critics of neighborhood schools argue that high-poverty schools in racially segregated areas will never provide an equitable education.
Every town thinks it has an answer and it is usually money.
It never works. Orfield believes that Seattle school officials were heavily influenced in their decision to end busing by the charismatic leadership of the late Superintendent John Stanford. He was very naive about it. A powerful black leader lobbying for resegregation leaves liberals powerless. Orfield's pessimistic prediction is that over time the best principals and teachers will burn out at high-poverty schools, parental involvement will remain minimal and academic achievement will stall despite extra money.