Civil Rights Groups Speak to Importance of Education Civil Rights Data Collection

WASHINGTON – Today, 32 civil rights and education groups submitted joint comments reinforcing the importance of the Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC).

Citing the value of the data in ensuring equal educational opportunity and compliance with federal law, the groups underscored the importance of preserving the scope, frequency and public accessibility of the CRDC. The letter states:

Disaggregated data reported in the civil rights data collection (CRDC) help us to know about students’ experiences in schools and whether all students, including students of color, English learners, and students with disabilities, have equal access to education. The CRDC allows students, parents and advocates to answer questions like, “Does enrollment in calculus at this school reflect the school as a whole?,” “Are White students less likely to be suspended out of school than Black students?,” “Are students at this school restrained more often than students at other schools?” and “Do teachers at schools where most students are low-income have greater or fewer years of experience than teachers at schools where students are more affluent?”  Answers to these questions help us all to know whether individual students or groups of students are experiencing discrimination and whether or not there is equal educational opportunity.

As the letter concludes, “Any change to limit the scope, frequency, or public accessibility of the civil rights data collection would certainly hamper the ability of the department to fulfil its legal obligations and would undermine our shared interest in the best education for every child.”

Click here to read the letter.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference, visit www.civilrights.org.

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