A lawsuit filed Wednesday in Suffolk County Superior Court alleges that Massachusetts maintains a school‑assignment system that routes Black and Latino students into low‑opportunity districts, violating their constitutional right to an adequate education. Plaintiffs – nine students from Springfield, Holyoke, Boston, Lawrence, Brockton, Lynn and Worcester, joined by the civil‑rights organization Lawyers for Civil Rights and the advocacy group Brown’s Promise – argue that the state’s policy of assigning students solely based on residence reproduces housing segregation in public schools.
According to a 2024 state advisory council report, 63 % of Massachusetts schools are segregated or intensely segregated, and schools with higher concentrations of students of color experience lower graduation and college‑matriculation rates. Jillian Lenson, senior attorney at Lawyers for Civil Rights, said, “It’s not student potential, it’s the conditions of their schools that drive these disparate outcomes, conditions that the state has maintained and perpetuated for decades.”
The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education responded that it does not have the authority to change district boundaries or compel schools to admit out‑of‑district students. Jacqueline Reis, a department spokesperson, said, “Massachusetts leads the nation in student achievement, and we are committed to building on this progress to strengthen our education system for every student in our state.” State officials also noted investments aimed at reducing graduation gaps and pledged additional funding for high‑poverty districts.
GeDá Jones Herbert, chief legal counsel at Brown’s Promise, clarified that the suit is not seeking mandatory integration but rather an investment in evidence‑backed practices that benefit all students. “Black and Latino students are blocked out of access to those opportunities, and that’s unconstitutional,” he said.
The complaint asks the court to compel the state to address the disparities that arise from rules assigning students to schools based on where they live. Remedies sought include expanding regional magnet programs, increasing funding for under‑resourced schools, and eliminating opt‑out mechanisms that limit equitable access.
The case joins a series of recent state‑level desegregation lawsuits, such as those filed in New Jersey in 2018 and Minnesota in 2015, underscoring a growing legal strategy to confront the educational inequities tied to residential segregation.