Rand Quinn to KQED: Private school surge in San Francisco tied to desegregation era

Rand Quinn, center, engaged in a classroom discussion with two students. (HKB Photo/Holden Blanco for Penn GSE)

In a recent feature by San Francisco public radio station KQED’s series Bay Curious exploring San Francisco’s exceptionally high rate of private school enrollment, Rand Quinn, associate professor in Penn GSE’s Policy, Organizations, Leadership, and Systems Division, traced the roots of this long-standing trend back to the city’s public school desegregation efforts in the 1970s.

“When the courts demanded that San Francisco Unified School District desegregate, private school enrollment surged,” Quinn told KQED. “This surge essentially created a permanent shift away from public education that we see today.”

Quinn, author of Class Action: Desegregation and Diversity in San Francisco Schools, explained that busing policies, intended to diversify student populations, faced resistance from many families, especially white and Asian families who feared declining educational standards. Many turned to San Francisco’s extensive network of Catholic and independent private schools.

That shift, Quinn noted, sparked a cycle of declining public school enrollment and reduced funding that continues to shape the district today. “The burden of under-resourced schools falls disproportionately on working-class and poor families,” he said.

San Francisco’s private school enrollment rate currently stands at 30%, nearly four times the California state average.

Read or listen to the full story on KQED’s website.