Equity Through Universal School Enrollment
 

In 2017, One Camden was founded expressly to ensure that Camden's school enrollment process was equitable. One Camden assimilated household preferences to ensure students attend a high-quality school. In the five years since launching, One Camden has emerged as a national leader in supporting an equitable choice of schools. However, little is understood about the preferences of families using this innovative system—information needed to assess the effectiveness and equity of the choice process.

Using five years of household school preference data, this study considers the inquiries by

a) analyzing existing household school choice data 

b) designing a survey to receive additional input from families about their choices

The study will support parental decision-making in Camden, inform New Jersey policymaking, and contribute to the sparse academic literature on the parental priorities underlying school choice. Further, it will offer Rutgers graduate students an experiential learning opportunity to conduct research with a community partner.  A state-level report will address the data from a best practices standpoint to inform other cities regarding how to equitably facilitate university enrollment. The report will be published and distributed through the NJ State Policy Lab to a statewide policy audience.