The Supreme Court's 5-4 decision Thursday to strike down school integration plans in Louisville, Ky., and Seattle could affect the ethnic makeup of Fort Wayne Community Schools.

As Allen County's most diverse school district, with almost 32,000 students who speak 71 different languages, FWCS uses several methods to ensure diversity in its individual schools.

“Through a combination of choice and magnet schools and racial balance, we try to get a diverse mix of students at every school,” said FWCS spokeswoman Susan Imler. Racial balance means schools must have no less than 10 percent to 15 percent black students and no more than 45 percent to 50 percent.

FWCS opened several magnet schools, beginning in the late 1970s, after a parent group sued the district, saying elementary schools were illegally segregated. Magnets offer specialized programs in science and technology, performing arts, and foreign languages to attract a broad mix of students.

Gary Orfield, a UCLA education expert, told The Associated Press there are 2,000 magnet schools that educate about 2 million children.

While FWCS has been following the Supreme Court decision, Imler said “it's going to take us a while to really digest it.” FWCS lawyer Bill Sweet, who is studying the ruling, was unavailable for comment.

According to the AP, school districts that have plans that resemble the ones struck down by the court are expected to look for other ways to make their schools racially balanced without specifically relying on race. One possibility is using family income, since blacks are more likely than whites to be poor.

The Jefferson County and Seattle school systems, whose integration plans were the subjects of Thursday's decisions, employ slightly different methods of taking students' race into account when determining which schools they will attend.

The Louisville case grew out of complaints from several parents whose children were not allowed to attend the schools of their choice. The Seattle school district said it used race as a factor only at the end of a lengthy process in allocating students among the city's high schools. Seattle suspended its program after parents sued.

“We feel pretty confident that our choice program, including our magnet schools, is a good thing for the community,” Imler said. “We think it provides a great opportunity for students from a variety of cultures to learn to work together at an early age. It equips them for the realities of society.”

She said the district will continue to examine the court's decision to “see what effect it will have on us.

“There's still a lot of dust to settle on the issue before we understand what it's going to mean.”


The Associated Press contributed to this story