Education Commons^™

Magnet Schools Promote Diversity, Opportunity, Equity, Achievement, Genevieve Siegel-Hawley, Thomas J. Shields

School of Professional and Continuing Studies Faculty Publications

Last spring, nearly 400 people from across the metro area came together over two days at the University of Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth University to learn about our region’s troubled public school history … and how to move forward.

Indicative of significant and communitywide investment, conference attendees expressed interest in solutions that would promote school diversity, equity and opportunity in central Virginia. These included innovative solutions and tested strategies for addressing educational inequalities both within and across area school systems.

One of the key solutions discussed during the conference was the establishment of regional magnet schools. These programs are typically …