North Carolina
NC schools are struggling with segregation 70 years after Brown v. Board, new research shows
North Carolina schools — and schools across the nation — remain segregated and often are more segregated now than they were just a few decades ago, according to two new studies.
Friday marks the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, in which the court ruled that laws racially segregating schools were unconstitutional and that separate facilities were inherently unequal.
The state and nation are more diverse now than in the 1990s. But while white students are now a minority of the state’s student traditional public school population, most white students still attend schools that are mostly white. At the same time, the average Black student attends schools that are disproportionately Black.
The changes are in part because of continued residential segregation, rising choices outside of the traditional school system and waning efforts to desegregate in the traditional public school system, researchers note. “Resegregation” of schools, then, is in part because of the loss of white students to other types of schools, like public charter schools.
“What we see in North Carolina is consistent with what’s happening in other parts of the nation,” said Jenn Ayscue, an assistant professor at North Carolina State University and co-author of one of the new studies that focused specifically on North Carolina. The study was done in partnership with the University of California-Los Angeles. “We did a similar report 10 years ago, and found that schools at that point were becoming more segregated. So in this last decade, it’s gotten even worse.”
The causes of the problem are often also out of the control of schools alone.
“Residential segregation has not gone anywhere in this country,” said Jerry Wilson, director of policy and advocacy at the Center for Racial Equity in Education, a Charlotte-based organization. “It remains and that’s the one that policymakers just seem unwilling to do much about. We’ve tinkered around with schools as a means of desegregating. But ultimately, our society and policymakers have proven unwilling to really address the heart of it, which is residential segregation.”
How segregated schools are can affect academic outcomes for the students who attend them, Ayscue said.
One of the reasons racial integration matters is that race often correlates with other meaningful demographic statistics, Ayscue said. In schools that were “intensely segregated” with students of color in 2021, 82.6% of the students were recipient of free or reduced-price lunch.
Intensely segregated refers to schools that enrolled 90% to 100% students of color. Students of color statewide comprise about 55% of the student population.
Ayscue said students tend to do better in schools where household incomes tend to be higher, although there are always outliers. More affluent schools tend to have fewer needs, more experienced teachers and less employee turnover.
During the 1989-90 school year, less than 10% of Black students attended a school that was intensely segregated with students of color. But during the 2021-22 school year, just under 30% of Black students did.
But white students are less likely now to attend schools that are intensely segregated with white students. During the 1989-90 school year, 21.6% of schools were intensely segregated with white students. But by 2021-22 school year, that was 1.9% of schools.
Integration is better in more rural school districts, where there aren’t as many schools. A single town might have only one school that all students attend, Ayscue said.
What can be done
Ayscue and her fellow researchers recommend expanding magnet school programs or other methods of offering a “controlled choice” for families. Magnet schools can take shape a few different ways but are essentially normal public schools with extra programming that outside families can apply to attend. They typically take neighborhood students and outside applicants. Because of that mix, they often are more diverse than other nearby schools.
Magnet schools are relatively rare, mostly concentrated in urban and suburban areas. North Carolina has 226 magnet schools this year, located in 17 school systems. Nearly all of the magnet schools are in Wake, Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Durham, Guilford, Winston-Salem/Forsyth and Cabarrus county school systems. The state has 115 school systems and more than 2,600 schools.
NC State’s researchers found some school systems are working to reduce segregation at their schools. Durham Public Schools next year will start is “Growing Together” student assignment plan, a heavily debated major overhaul that creates sub-districts in which students can attend a neighborhood or magnet school and limits choice options across the system. Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools is studying its enrollment and attendance trends before creating a student assignment policy that would attempt to increase socioeconomic diversity at the district’s schools.
A national study from Stanford University and the University of Southern California pointed to charter schools are a reason for the resegregation. Charters can often be heavily segregated — attracting mostly white families in suburban areas or attracting mostly families of color in urban areas. In North Carolina, charter schools tend to be whiter than the statewide average.
The demographics of charter schools have been shifting for several years to close to statewide averages. That’s in part because more of them are using weighted lotteries to admit students. Those lotteries give applicants more weight — and a greater likelihood fo getting into the school — if the applicant is “educationally disadvantaged.” Charter schools create their own rules for weighted lotteries but must include more weight for low-income students.
But most schools don’t have weighted lotteries and charter schools are still more concentrated in urban areas, said Kris Nordstrom, a senior policy analyst with the Education & Law Project at the left-learning North Carolina Justice Center, which has been critical of charter schools. From what Nordstrom has researched, the demographic disparities between urban charter schools and the counties they are located in are more stark than when simply comparing statewide averages.
The impact on segregation of the expansion of private school vouchers will be hard to measure, Ayscue said. Individual private schools don’t report their demographic data publicly. Demographic data are available on voucher recipients only on a statewide basis.
At least two people are dead and “several” others are injured after a “planned fight” at a North Carolina park escalated into a mass shooting, authorities said.
Police have identified several victims and suspects after Monday’s shooting at Leinbach Park near Jefferson Middle School, according to the Winston-Salem Police Department.
Authorities confirmed there were multiple victims in the shooting, but did not provide an exact number. The suspects were still at large over two hours later.
Officers were called to the park just before 10 a.m. after reports of a fight, which then escalated into multiple people shooting each other.
Area schools are not in lockdown, and classes are operating as normal, police said.
“Due to the number of people involved, efforts are ongoing to account for everyone. At this time, some of those involved in the incident are juveniles,” police said.
According to local news station WFMY, at least three people were taken to the hospital. Officials have not shared their conditions.
Police said the shooting was an isolated incident and remains under investigation.
This is a developing story
The NC Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Sunday, April 19, 2026 results for each game:
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 6-2-0, Fireball: 6
Evening: 4-1-7, Fireball: 5
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 7-6-9-4, Fireball: 4
Evening: 8-1-5-6, Fireball: 6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 5 numbers from April 19 drawing
02-21-32-35-37
Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Double Play numbers from April 19 drawing
18-26-27-31-42
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 19 drawing
32-42-52-53-55, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All North Carolina Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.
For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at North Carolina Lottery Offices. By mail, send a prize claim form, your signed lottery ticket, copies of a government-issued photo ID and social security card to: North Carolina Education Lottery, P.O. Box 41606, Raleigh, NC 27629. Prize claims less than $600 do not require copies of photo ID or a social security card.
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a prize claim form and deliver the form, along with your signed lottery ticket and government-issued photo ID and social security card to any of these locations:
- Asheville Regional Office & Claim Center: 16-G Regent Park Blvd., Asheville, NC 28806, 877-625-6886 press #1. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Greensboro Regional Office & Claim Center: 20A Oak Branch Drive, Greensboro, NC 27407, 877-625-6886 press #2. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Charlotte Regional Office & Claim Center: 5029-A West W. T. Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28269-1861, 877-625-6886 press #3. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- NC Lottery Headquarters: Raleigh Claim Center & Regional Office, 2728 Capital Blvd., Suite 144, Raleigh, NC 27604, 877-625-6886 press #4. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
- Greenville Regional Office & Claim Center: 2790 Dickinson Avenue, Suite A, Greenville, NC 27834, 877-625-6886 press #5. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Wilmington Regional Office & Claim Center: 123 North Cardinal Drive Extension, Suite 140, Wilmington, NC 28405, 877-625-6886 press #6. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://nclottery.com/.
When are the North Carolina Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
- Pick 3, 4: 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Cash 5: 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Carolina Connect editor. You can send feedback using this form.
The North Carolina Tar Heels will be a young program across the board next season, with well over two dozen freshmen and numerous additions from the transfer portal this offseason. Expectations for the 2026 season are lowered dramatically after a disastrous first season for head coach Bill Belichick, though those expectations could help the Tar Heels fly under the radar.
As the Tar Heels approach the end of spring ball, it is time to look at the veterans of the team—the ones who have the experience to lead, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Let’s look at three underrated seniors for the 2026 football season.
Ade Willie, Cornerback
Willie joins the Tar Heels program after four years with Michigan State, as the former 4-star player in the 2022 recruiting class gets an opportunity to not only provide depth to the secondary, but potentially start Week 0 against TCU.
Willie played in over 30 games with the Spartans and brings experience in the secondary at cornerback and safety, along with quality length and closing speed to the football. For a defense that needs players to step up, the redshirt senior from IMG Academy will be asked to do so.
Isaiah Johnson, Defensive Lineman
The defensive line is beginning to look like one of the Tar Heels’ strengths for the 2026 season. Johnson, a former transfer from Arizona, enters his redshirt senior year looking to add another year of production after 40 tackles and two sacks this past season.
North Carolina has an impressive group of starters with Malkart Abou-Jaoude, Leroy Jackson, and incoming transfer Jaylen Harvey. Johnson adds value to the group as a run defender with the ability to penetrate the pocket. While not discussed as a key player, Johnson’s name will be used plenty during the regular season as a potential standout for the program’s defensive front.
Coleman Bryson, Safety
Bryson was a reserve player for the Tar Heels’ secondary last season as a big nickel defender in the rotation. Heading into his redshirt senior year, the former Minnesota Gopher is looking to become a full-time starter in the secondary.
It wasn’t long ago when Bryson was making plays as the 2022 Pinstripe Bowl Defensive MVP. His special teams abilities were valuable for North Carolina last season, and he flashed at times in coverage against tight ends, including a pass breakup in the season-opener against TCU. The Waynesville, North Carolina, native could be a key defender on the back-seven in 2026.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
-
Politics49 seconds agoTrump and Iran Face Off in Iran War Negotiations
-
Business7 minutes agoThe Onion Signs New Deal to Take Over Infowars
-
Science13 minutes agoVideo: This Parrot Has No Beak, But Is at the Top of the Pecking Order
-
Culture31 minutes agoPoetry Challenge Day 2: Love, How It Works and What It Means
-
Lifestyle37 minutes agoThe 11 most challenged books of 2025, according to the American Library Association
-
Education43 minutes agoA Time of Growth for Museums for Children
-
Technology49 minutes agoTim Cook will still be Apple’s Trump whisperer
-
World55 minutes agoDeadly shooting at historic tourist site leaves one dead, several injured as motive unclear