Recommendations of Desegregation Panel Regarding Cluster Reorganization

    UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN 

SOUTHERN DIVISION

)
RONALD BRADLEY, et al., )

)
Plaintiffs )

)
v. )

)
WILLIAM G. MILLIKEN, et al. , )

■ )
Defendants )

)
and )

)
DETROIT FEDERATION OF TEACHERS, )
LOCAL 231, AMERICAN FEDERATION )
OF TEACHERS, AFL-CIO, )

)
Defendant- )
Intervenor )

)
and )

)
DENISE MAGDOWSKI, et al., )

• )
Defendants- )
Intervenor )

)
et al. )

__________ 1

CIVIL ACTION NO: 
35257

RECOMMENDATIONS OF DESEGREGATION PANEL 

REGARDING CLUSTER REORGANIZATION

The Court in its ruling and order in this matter, inter aldja* 

authorized the Panel to "recommend reorganization of clusters within the 

desegregation area in order to minimize administrative inconvenience, or 

time, and/or numbers of pupils requiring transportation .

The Panel in carrying out its assignment to develop a pupil assignment 

plan, has reviewed the clusters described in Exhibit P.M. 12 and has concluded that 

the 15 clusters should be increased to 16 and that certain school districts should



be realigned in the cluster arrangement. These changes are recommended in order 

to: (1) attain a racial composition as close as possible to the racial composition

of the desegregation area as a whole; (2)' provide minimum travel time for all 

students; and (3) reduce clusters to the smallest size without splitting high 

school constellations or suburban districts.

Attached is a revised cluster map dated 10 July 1972 and a description 

of the student population of the revised clusters as recommended by the Panel.

An alphabetic identification system is used to distinguish the revised clusters 

from plaintiff's plan.

In the opinion of the Panel, recommended revisions offer the following 

specific advantages: (1) the range of percentage of black students is reduced

(11 of the 16 clusters fall between 23-28% black, or within 10% of the median 

for the area as a whole), (2) the range in cluster size is reduced, and 

(3) for some clusters routing and distances are decidedly improved.

Those clusters most significantly improved are:

Cooley to Livonia rather than Farmington

Murray to Melvindale and Lincoln Park rather than Birmingham,
Royal Oak and Hazel Park

Northern to Ferndale, Berkley and Royal Oak rather than Lincoln 
Park, Allen Park and Southgate.

The clustering is improved by separation of Kettering from Denby 
and Finney and by keeping the Cooley constellation intact.

Both Kettering and Finney have significant numbers of black students 
sufficient to function as bases for independent clusters. When com­
bined they have 25,000 black students, necessitating a cluster total 
in excess of 90,000. The revised plan permits division of these 
schools into two clusters.

Cooley and Redford together have 16,000 black students, but when 
clustered with Livonia, which is the second largest school system 
in the desegregation area, a racial composition of 22.6 percent 
results.



Respectfully submitted by the Panel, as listed below in alphabetical 

order, this twelfth day of July, 1972.

/Q /(" 'J-Y.l, J-(T- L
Gordon Foster

vJA*: 0 v L i

L . • J /
^  Sy'\-,

Merle Henrickson

s'
Harold Wagner

//>



CLUSTER REVISION RECOMMENDED BY THE PANEL - JUMfclO, 1972f

Lake Shore
i

Wayne-Westland

Dearborn

. V̂̂ Wsstwood 
Inkster \ .
| M ri l M -“ Dearborn^f/.slvindai , _  liver Houge

o /
pork /L in co ln / Ecorso 

Park |  v



t  t
Panel Recommendation for  Revised Clustering Plan

Black
Total Enrollment Enrol lment Percent

Lake Shore 9 ,62 1 48 . 5
Roseville 14 ,734 213 1 . 4
East Detroit 12 ,831 6 • 1
Southeastern 15 ,4 18 12, 708 82. 4

52 ,604 12.-975 24. 7

South Lake 5, 306 0 .0
G rosse  Pointe 13 ,323 1 . o
Lakeview 7, 751 0 . 0
King 9 ,80 2 9, 496 9 6 .9

3 6 ,1 8 2 9, 497 26. 2

Centerline 6, 865 3 .0
Fitzgerald 5, 374 0 . 0
W arren  Woods 8, 958 0 . 0
Northeastern 10 ,286 9, 130 88. 8

3 1 ,4 8 3 9, 133 29. 0

F ra.se r 7, 304 1 . 0
Harper Woads 1 ,981 0 . 0
Denby
Fxmiey

10 ,906  
15 ,093

560
8, 549

5. 1
56, 6

3 5 ,2 84 9, n o 25. 8

Van Dyke 7, 192 . 2 .0
W arren 2 9 ,9 9 5 52 • 2
Osborn 11 ,9 6 2 2, 730 2 2 ,8
Kettering 17 ,966 16 ,749 9 3 .2

6 7 , 1 1 5 19 ,533 29. 1

Hazel P ark 7 ,9 8 5 0 .0
Hamtramck 3 ,0 4 4 90 5 2 9 .7
Lamphere 5 ,878 0 • 0 

nMadison Heights 4, 708 L,
Troy
Pershing

5, 958 
14 ,6 72

0
10 ,0 03

•0
68 ,2

4 2 ,242 10, 915 25. 8



•  I
Panel Recommendation for  Revised Clustering Plan

Total Enrollment

F erndale  
Berkley- 
Highland P ark  
Royal Oak 
Clawson  
Northern

8, 376 
8, 404
7, 837 

19, 267
4, 996
8, 929

57, 809

Birmingham  
Oak P ark  
Southfield 
Central

17, 520
5, 867 

16 ,346  
12 ,746
52,479

Bloomfield Hills
Farmington
Clarencevii le
West  Bloomfield
Ford
Mumford

9 ,4 3 8  
16 ,339  

3 ,9 1 8  
4, 772 

10, 705 
12, 115
57 ,287

Livonia
Cooley
Redford

38, 105 
19 ,2 00  
15, 534
72 ,839

Garden City
South Redford
N. Dearborn Heights
Crestwood
C h e rry  Hill
Redford Union
Cody
Mackenzie

13, 853 
7, 883 
2, 765 

' 5, 282 
5, 127 

9 ,6 7 7  
16 ,056  
20, 745

Black
rollment Percent

799 9 .5
8 . 1

6, 158 78. 6
3 .0
0 .0

8, 877 9 9 .4

15, 845 2 7 .4

5 .0
590 10. 1

5 .0
12 ,702 99. 7
13 ,302 25. 3

35 .4
9 . 1
0 .0
0 .0

3 ,3 1 4 3 1 .0
11 ,  540 95. 3
14 ,8 98 2 6 .0

8 .0
15, 771 82. 1

683 4. 4
16 ,4 62 2 2 .6

0 .0
0 .0
0 . 0
0 .0

15 .3
2 .0

2 ,4 2 5 15. 1
20, 192 9 7 .3

81, 388 2 2 ,6 1 7 27. 8



I  I
Panel Recommendation fo r  Revised Clustering Plan

Black
Total Enrollment Enrollment P ercent

Taylor 20, 004 303 1. 5
Dcarbo rn 21, 634 2 . 0
Dearborn Heights 5, 626 0 , 0
Fair lane 1, 138 0 . o
Romulus 5, 450 961 17. 6
Northwestern 14, 308 14 ,2 6 5 9 9 .7

‘ 6 8 ,2 1 0 15, 531 22. 8

Inkster 4, 624 3,9-62 85. 7
W ayne 22, 514 21 , 1
Westwood 5, 120 1, 842 3 6 .0
Chadsey 5, 975 2, 053 34, 4

38, 233 7, 878 2 0 .6

Ecorse 4, 341 2 ,2 6 8 52 .2
Allen Park 6, 522 5 • 1
Southgate 5, 613 0 • 0
Western 11, 314 4, 964 43. 9

27, 790 7, 237 26. 0

River  Rouge 3, 858 1 ,72 3 4 4 .7
Riverview 3 ,66 5 0 * o
Wyandotte
Southwestern

8, 403 
1 1 , 0 2 8

0
4, 826

. 0
4 3 .9

2 6 ,9 54 6, 559 2 4 .3

Lincoln P ark 12, 217 6 .0
Melvindale 5, 574 0 . 0
M urray 8, 268 6-, 359 76 .9

2 6 ,0 5 9 6, 365 2 4 .4

t

July 10, 1972