The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) was the executive branch agency most often tasked with implementing the federal government’s desegregation policy. The statistics here show the change in the extent of racial isolation of African American students from 1968 to 1970, broken down by region.
| Percentage of African Americans Attending Public Schools at Increasing Levels of Isolation, Fall 1968 and Fall 1970, Elementary and Secondary School Survey | ||||||||
| Area | % African American Population | 0–49.9% Minority Schools | 50–100% Minority Schools | 80–100% Minority Schools | 90–100% Minority Schools | 95–100% Minority Schools | 99–100% Minority Schools | 100% Minority Schools |
| Continental U.S | ||||||||
| 1968 | 14.5 | 23.4 | 76.6 | 68.0 | 64.3 | 61.0 | 53.0 | 39.7 |
| 1970 | 14.9 | 33.1 | 66.9 | 49.4 | 43.3 | 38.2 | 28.0 | 14.0 |
| 32 northern and western states1 | ||||||||
| 1968 | 9.5 | 27.6 | 72.4 | 57.4 | 50.7 | 44.3 | 30.9 | 12.3 |
| 1970 | 9.8 | 27.5 | 72.5 | 57.6 | 51.1 | 44.6 | 30.4 | 11.9 |
| 6 border states and D.C.2 | ||||||||
| 1968 | 17.1 | 28.4 | 71.6 | 63.8 | 60.2 | 57.9 | 46.3 | 25.2 |
| 1970 | 17.3 | 29.8 | 70.2 | 60.6 | 57.0 | 53.3 | 44.1 | 23.1 |
| 11 southern states3 | ||||||||
| 1968 | 26.6 | 18.4 | 81.6 | 78.8 | 77.8 | 77.0 | 74.8 | 68.0 |
| 1970 | 27.2 | 39.1 | 60.9 | 39.4 | 33.4 | 29.2 | 22.4 | 14.1 |
Source: Department of Health, Education, and Welfare Press Release, June 18, 1971, reprinted in Abraham A. Ribicoff, “The Future of School Integration in the United States,” Journal of Law and Education 1 (Jan. 1972): 13.
1 AK, AZ, CA, CO, CT, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, MA, ME, MI, MN, MT, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, WY.
2 DC, DE, KY, MD, MO, OK, WV.
3 AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, TX, VA.
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