I'd say, "Wow. Intense." Except that was my high school experience as well. I went to a school on the border between a rich white area and a poor black area, and so the school was 'naturally' integrated at a time (the late 70s) when there was plenty o' bussing going on to maintain desegregation of high schools. Still, in my advanced honors classes of 30+ students each, there were, hummm....three black kids? Maybe? I don't know why. I don't know how they tested us, even, as we didn't take those kinds of tests at that point. Personally, i think it was a simple case of cultural bias among the school and its teachers. (I can't think of a single black teacher in the school, now that I consider it.) And this, my friends, was in New York City. (Well, Queens. But still, officially NYC, and certainly part of the NYC school administration's purview.)

Hard. Hard choices.

TC, you remind me that I was going to mention this in my blog post. I went to a magnet high school which was racially integrated. I do know that when I started being in honors classes (tenth grade, maybe? can't remember), my sense was that the racial composition of my class did change. I wish I remembered that more clearly. But anyway, one difference here is that there are four distinct levels, not just an honors class here or there. (I also seem to remember a smattering of subjects which had no honors class option, forcing ongoing integration.) Also, this is a community that prides itself on diversity, etc. Your school and mine were both part of the huge NYC school district. Pride? Yeah, right. I'm not saying they did well by the black kids in school back then. But this is so blatant, this discrimination, and in a small town that should know better.

My sister lives in Maplewood. She really likes it - although she doesn't have kids so I can't speak to the school issue. Your mileage may vary but she finds it very convenient to Manhattan (she's a director/stage manager and works in the city). I would say, from my several visits there, that that area does in fact have a distinct personality.

Tamar,

You should think of tracking as reserve Affirmative Action. If a school district like Maplewood did not have tracking, I would guest that many of the white parents would pull their kids out by either moving or spending them to private school.

Columbia High School sounds like most high schools in medium and small towns throughout the south. If it were not for tracking, the whites would not attend at all.

I would also guess that if you closer at the school, there are the "white sports" and the "black" sports; the "white" electives and the "black" electives; and the "white" extra-cirricular and the "black" extra-cirricular just like in most of the public schools in the south.

Jennifer, yes, I've heard nice things about Maplewood, which is why this gave me pause.

Superdestroyer, I think you're right, but what does that say about a community where people -- white middle/upper middle class folk -- move there specifically because of the diversity, often saying they want their kids to grow up around all ethnicities and not be segregated? Does it mean they talk one way and act another? I find that just so sad.

I go to Columbia High School, (no I'm not lying) and I'm one of those people who proves the stats wrong. I'm black and in all level 4 classes (level 4 is the highest) and my brother, who is also black (but you probably guessed that) is in all AP (advanced placement) classes

I attend Cooley High school in detroit,Michigan(one of the most segregated states in America).that only known and went to school with two white kids in my eleven years of schools. to me interacting with whites is unusual other than the few teachers i've had.i got two questions. one, was intergretion of schools the best way to better the education of blacks? now that we tried intergration can we now focus on things that would better our education?