A larger percentage of Black, Hispanic, and American Indian 4th-graders than Asian/Pacific Islander and White 4th-graders attended high-poverty schools.

Eligibility for the free or reduced-price school lunch program provides a proxy measure of family poverty status. Overall, 41 percent of all 4th-graders were eligible for the program in 2005, but percentages differed by race/ethnicity. Larger percentages of Black (70 percent), Hispanic (73 percent), and American Indian (65 percent) students were eligible for the program than White (24 percent) and Asian/Pacific Islander (33 percent) students (see table 6-1).

Larger percentages of Black, Hispanic, and American Indian students attended high-poverty schools than White or Asian/Pacific Islander students. For example, 48 percent of Black, 49 percent of Hispanic, and 36 percent of American Indian students were enrolled in schools with the highest measure of poverty (schools with more than 75 percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), compared with 5 percent of White and 16 percent of Asian/Pacific Islander 4th-graders.

A similar pattern existed when accounting for the school’s location. In 2005, in central cities, urban fringe, and rural areas, higher percentages of Black, Hispanic, and American Indian 4th-graders than their peers in other racial/ethnic groups were eligible for the school lunch program. In addition, a larger percentage of Black, Hispanic, and American Indian students in urban fringe and rural areas and Black and Hispanic students in central cities attended the highest poverty schools than did students of other race/ethnicities.

In addition to attending schools with the largest concentrations of students from poor families, Black and Hispanic 4th-graders were more likely to attend schools with high minority enrollments than White, Asian/Pacific Islander, or American Indian 4th-graders (see table 6-2). The majority of Black (51 percent) and Hispanic (56 percent) 4th-graders attended schools in which 75 percent or more of the students were minorities, compared with 3 percent of White, 31 percent of Asian/Pacific Islander, and 36 percent of American Indian 4th-graders.