High Schools for Equity documents the practices and outcomes of five urban high schools in California that do an extraordinary job of preparing their students for success in higher education, productive careers, and a fulfilling life. The schools, which are non-selective in their admissions and serve populations that are predominantly low-income students of color, include both district-run and charteroperated schools in California’s largest cities. They are Animo Inglewood Charter High School in Los Angeles; June Jordan School for Equity and Leadership High School, both in San Francisco; New Tech High School in Sacramento; and Construction Tech Academy in San Diego.
This report, based on intensive case studies of the five schools, details the practices that support student success, the design features of the schools that enable these practices, and the policies that both support and, sometimes, obstruct their ability to accomplish their goals. It develops recommendations for the kinds of policy reinforcements and changes needed to develop and maintain schools like these on a much broader scale, so that they become the norm rather than the exception for students of color.
