Plaintiffs' Responses to Defendants' First Set of Interrogatories
Public Court Documents
October 30, 1990
17 pages
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Case Files, Sheff v. O'Neill Hardbacks. Plaintiffs' Responses to Defendants' First Set of Interrogatories, 1990. c627c98c-a346-f011-877a-002248226c06. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/644422fd-d933-4830-9578-3a225313fa70/plaintiffs-responses-to-defendants-first-set-of-interrogatories. Accessed November 02, 2025.
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CV89-030977S
MILO SHEFF, et al. SUPERIOR COURT
Plaintiffs
Vv. JUDICIAL DISTRICT OF
HARTFORD/NEW BRITAIN
WILLIAM A. O'NEILL, et al. AT HARTFORD
Defendants OCTOBER 30, 1990
o
e
e
e
PLAINTIFFS' RESPONSES TO DEFENDANTS
FIRST SET OF INTERROGATORIES
PAST VIOLATIONS: AFFIRMATIVE ACTS
1. Please identify each and every affirmative act by the
defendants, their predecessors, or any other state officer, agency
or other body which the plaintiffs will claim at trial violated the
State Constitution. For each such act provide the date the act
occurred, the person, agency or other body responsible for the act,
and any and all information the plaintiffs will claim that person,
agency or other body had or should have had at that time which
would have apprised them of the consequences of that act.
RESPONSE: As set out in the Complaint in this action, Defendants’
creation, maintenance, approval, funding and supervision of a
segregated, unequal, and inadequate educational system in the city
of Hartford and surrounding communities is an affirmative act
violative of the State Constitution.
In addition, plaintiffs may present evidence at trial of
specific actions by defendants that have contributed to this
unconstitutional system of public education. Plaintiffs do not
claim that proof of each such action is necessary to establish
liability in this case, nor do plaintiffs necessarily claim that
any individual act, taken alone, constituted a violation of the
state constitution. Instead, plaintiffs will show that these
actions demonstrate the defendants' active participation in the
development and maintenance of a segregated, unequal, and
2
inadequate educational system. Such specific actions may include,
but are not limited to the following:
a. Past and present implementation of C.G.S. sec.10-
240, requiring and designating that school district
boundaries be coterminous with municipal boundaries;
Db. Past and present implementation of C.G.S. sec.10-
184, requiring school-age children to attend public
school within the school district wherein the child
resides;
c. Implementation of C.G.S. sec.10-39, from 1969 through
1985, prohibiting the creation of regional school
districts that would have exceeded maximum enrollment
standards;
d. Past and present implementation of C.G.S. sec.10-
281, and implementation of sec.10-280A, in 1978 and
thereafter, authorizing and/or requiring payment of
transportation costs by local districts for students
attending private schools, as well as any and all
reimbursements of said costs by the state pursuant to
c.G.S. sec.10-266m;
e. Implementation of C.G.S. sec.10-226a et seq, in 1969,
and thereafter, requiring "racial balance" among
individual schools within the city of Hartford;
f. The State Board of Education's delay, from 1969 until
1981, in the adoption of regulations to implement the
state racial imbalance law required by C.G.S. sec.226e;
g. Implementation of the racial imbalance regulations,
in 1981 and thereafter;
h. Approval and funding, from 1954 to the present, by
the State Department of Education and the State Board of
Education, of new school construction and school
additions or renovations in Hartford and the surrounding
communities;
i. Approval and implementation by the Governor and
agents of the Governor of housing policies that
contribute to racial and economic segregation in the
Hartford region, including but not limited to the
concentration of low income housing programs and public
housing for families in the city of Hartford; preferences
for local residents in suburban housing programs; and
restrictions on the use of low-income rental subsidies
outside of urban areas;
3
3 Implementation of funding mechanisms for Project
Concern, from 1966 and thereafter, that led to the
reduced size of the program in the Hartford region.
k. Adoption and implementation from 1830 through 1868
of a system of de jure school segregation.
1. Establishment and maintenance of an unequal and
unconstitutional system of educational financing, up to
1986.
At the present time, plaintiffs are continuing to investigate
actions taken by defendants that have contributed to the
constitutional violations set out in the Complaint. At this time,
plaintiffs have not completed research as to what information
defendants had or should have had at particular times which would
have apprised defendants of the consequences of particular actions.
Further details in response to this interrogatory will be provided
in a timely fashion, in advance of trial.
2. Please identify each and every affirmative act by the
defendants, their predecessors or any other state officer, agency
or other body which the plaintiffs will claim at trial caused the
conditions of racial and ethnic isolation in the Hartford Public
Schools and/or the identified suburban school districts.’ For each
such act provide the date the act occurred, the person, agency or
other body responsible for the act, and any and all information the
plaintiffs will claim that person, agency or other body had or
should have had at that time which would have apprised them of the
consequences of that act.
[Please see response to Interrogatory 1. In addition, as
stated in the response to Interrogatory 1, plaintiffs are
continuing to investigate actions taken by defendants that have
contributed to the constitutional violations set out in the
Complaint. At this time, plaintiffs have not completed research
as to what information defendants had or should have had at
particular times which would have apprised defendants of the
consequences of particular actions. Further details in response
to this interrogatory will be provided in a timely fashion, in
advance of trial.]
3. Please identify each and every affirmative act by the
defendants, their predecessors or any other state officer, agency
or other body which the plaintiffs will claim at trial caused the
'As used herein the term "identified suburban school
districts" shall refer to those school districts, other than
Hartford, listed in paragraph 33 of Plaintiffs' Complaint.
4
condition of socio-economic isolation in the Hartford Public
Schools and/or the identified suburban school districts. For each
such act provide the date the act occurred, the person, agency or
other body responsible for the act, and any and all information the
plaintiffs will claim that person, agency or other body had or
should have had at that time which would have apprised them of the
consequences of the act.
[Please see response to Interrogatory 1. In addition, as
stated in the response to Interrogatory 1, plaintiffs are
continuing to investigate actions taken by defendants that have
contributed to the constitutional violations set out in the
Complaint. At this time, plaintiffs have not completed research
as to what information defendants had or should have had at
particular times which would have apprised defendants of the
consequences of particular actions. Further details in response
to this interrogatory will be provided in a timely fashion, in
advance of trial.]
4. Please identify each and every affirmative act by the
defendants, their predecessors or any other state officer, agency
or other body which the plaintiffs will claim at trial cause the
concentration of "at risk" children in the Hartford Public Schools.
For each such act provide the date the act occurred, the person,
agency or other body responsible for that act, and any and all
information the plaintiffs will claim that person, agency or other
body had or should have had at that time which would have apprised
them of the consequences of that act.
[Please see response to Interrogatory 1. In addition, as
stated in the response to Interrogatory 1, plaintiffs are
continuing to investigate actions taken by defendants that have
contributed to the constitutional violations set out in the
Complaint. At this time, plaintiffs have not completed research
as to what information defendants had or should have had at
particular times which would have apprised defendants of the
consequences of particular actions. Further details in response
to this interrogatory will be provided in a timely fashion, in
advance of trial.)
PAST VIOLATIONS: OMISSIONS
5. Please identify each and every affirmative act, step, or
plan which the plaintiffs will claim at trial the defendants, their
predecessors, or any other state officer, agency or other body were
required by the State Constitution to take or implement to address
the condition of racial and ethnic isolation in the Hartford Public
Schools and the identified suburban school districts, but which was
not in fact taken or implemented. For each such act, step, or plan
a
provide the following:
RESPONSE: As set out in the Complaint, defendants' failure to act
in the face of defendants' awareness of the educational necessity
for racial, ethnic, and economic integration in the public schools,
defendants' recognition of the lasting harm inflicted on poor and
minority students concentrated in urban school districts, and
defendants' knowledge of the array of legal tools available to
defendants to remedy the problem, is violative of the State
Constitution. Plaintiffs challenge defendants' failure to provide
plaintiffs with the equal educational opportunities to which the
defendants were obligated to ensure.
Since at least 1965, when the United States Civil Rights
Commission reported to Connecticut's Commissioner of Education,
defendants have had knowledge of the increasing racial, ethnic,
and economic segregation in the Hartford metropolitan area and the
power and authority to remedy this school segregation. Not only
did defendants fail to take comprehensive or effective steps to
ameliorate the increasing segregation in and amecng the region's
schools, but defendants also failed to provide equal access to
educational resources to students in the schools in the Hartford
metropolitan area. Such resources include, but are not limited to,
number and qualification of staff; facilities; materials, books,
and supplies; and curriculum offerings.
Specifically, plaintiffs may present evidence at trial of the
many reports and recommendations presented to Defendants which
documented the widespread existence of racial, ethnic, and economic
segregation and isolation among the school districts and which
proposed or endorsed remedial efforts to eliminate such
segregation. Plaintiffs will not necessarily claim that if
implemented, the specific programs and policies offered in such
reports and recommendations would have been sufficient to address
the constitutional violation. Neither will plaintiffs necessarily
claim that any one particular recommendations was required by the
State Constitution. These reports and recommendations may include
but are not limited to the following:
a. United States Civil Rights Commission, Report to
Connecticut's Commissioner of Education (1965) ;
b. Center for Field Studies, Harvard Graduate School of
Education, Schools for Hartford (Cambridge, Mass.:
Harvard University, 1965);
c. "Equality and Quality in the Public Schools," Report
of a Conference Sponsored Jointly by the Connecticut
Commission on Civil Rights and the Connecticut State
Board of Education," (1966).
d. Request by the Connecticut Civil Rights Commission
6
to the Governor (request that the Governor take a stand
against de facto segregation and publish a statement on
the drawbacks of de facto segregation in the schools)
(1966).
e. Committee of Greater Hartford School Superintendents,
Proposal to Establish a Metropolitan Effort Toward
Regional Opportunity (METRO) (1966);
£. Legislative Commission on Human Rights and
Opportunities, Plan for the Creation and Funding of
Educational Parks (Hartford, December, 1968);
Js Task Force, Regional Advisory Committee for the
Capitol Region, "The Suburbs and the Poverty Problems of
Greater Hartford," (Hartford, September 30, 1968);
h. Irving L. Allen and J. David Colfax, Urban Problems
and Public Opinion in Four Cities (Urban Research Report
No. 14, Community Structure Series No. 3; Storrs, Conn.:
University of Connecticut, 1968);
i. Walter R. Boland, et al., De Facto School Segregation
and The Student: A Study of the Schools in Connecticut's
Five Major Cities (Urban Research Report No. 15,
Community Structure Series No. 4; Storrs, Conn.:.
University of Connecticut, 1968);
Xk. Educational Resources and Development Center, The
School of Education and Continuing Education Service,
University of Connecticut, A Study of Urban School Needs
in the Five Largest Cities of Connecticut (Storrs, Conn.:
University of Connecticut, 1969);
l. Edward A. Lehan, Executive Secretary to the Hartford
City Manager, Report on Racial Composition of Hartford
Schools to the State Board of Education (Hartford, 1969);
m. Joint Committee of the Hartford Board of Education
and the Human Relations Commission, Hartford, Report,
(July, 1969);
n. City of Hartford, "Community Development Action Plan:
Education 1971-1975," (Sept. 1, 1970);
o. Hartford Board of Education, "Recommended Revision
in School Building Program," (May 18, 1970);
Local Government: Schools and Property, "The Report
the Governor's Commission on Tax Reforms, Submitted
Governor Thomas J. Meskill Pursuant to Executive Order
of 1972," (Hartford, Connecticut, December 18, 1972);
» 8 Commission to Study School Finance and Equal
Educational Opportunity, Financing Connecticut Schools:
Final Report of the Commission (Hartford, Conn., January,
1975) ;
r. "State Board of Education Policy Statement on Equal
Educational Opportunity," Connecticut State Board of
Education, (Hartford, October 27, 1986);
Ss. "Report on Racial/Ethnic Equity and Desegregation in
Connecticut's Public Schools," Connecticut State
Department of Education (1988); and
£. "Quality and Integrated Education: Options for
Connecticut," Connecticut State Department of Education
(1989).
In addition, plaintiffs' evidence at trial may include but
will not be limited to defendants' failure to eliminate
exclusionary zoning and housing policies; defendants' failure to
promote integrated housing in the Hartford region; and defendants!’
failure to establish a constitutional system of educational
financing up to and including 1986. At this time, plaintiffs are
still investigating the variety of proposals offered over time to
address the problems of segregation and isolation and the possible
methods of accomplishing those objectives.
a) The last possible date upon which that act, step or plan would
necessarily have been taken or implemented in order to have avoided
a violation that the Constitution;
[Please see response to Interrogatory 5. Plaintiffs have not
determined and are, at least at this time, unable to estimate the
last possible date upon which individual actions, steps, or plans
would necessarily have had to have been implemented in order to
have avoided violation of the State Constitution, nor do plaintiffs
concede the relevance of such an inquiry. ]
b) The specific details of how such act, step or plan should have
been carried out, including (1) the specific methods of
accomplishing the objectives of the act, step or plan, (2) an
estimate of how long it would have taken to carry out the act,
step, or plan, and (3) an estimate of the cost of carrying out the
act, step or plan;
[Please see response to Interrogatory 5. As stated therein,
plaintiffs challenge defendants' failure to provide plaintiffs with
the equal educational opportunities to which the defendants were
obligated to ensure. At this time, plaintiffs are still
investigating the variety of proposals offered over time to address
8
the problems of segregation and isolation and the possible methods
of accomplishing those objectives. Plaintiffs are currently unable
to specify which methods would have cured the constitutional
violation at particular moments in time, how long such methods
would have taken to implement, or the cost of implementation.
Furthermore, plaintiffs need not specify such information in order
to prevail on the claims of constitutional violation set forth in
the Complaint. ]
Cc) For Hartford and each of the identified suburban school
districts, the specific number and percentage of black, Hispanic
and white students who would, of necessity, have attended school
outside of the then existing school district in which they resided
in order for that act, step or plan to successfully address the
requirements of the Constitution.
Plaintiffs have not investigated this question and, at this
time, do not know the specific number and percentage of African
American, Latino, and white students who would, of necessity, have
attended school outside of the then existing school district in
which they resided in order to address constitutional requirements.
6. Please identify each and every affirmative act, step or
plan which the plaintiffs will claim at trial the defendants, their
predecessors, or any other state officer, agency or other body. were
required by the State Constitution to take or implement to address
the condition of socio-economic isolation in the Hartford Public
Schools and the identified suburban school districts, but which was
not in fact taken or implemented. For each such act, step or plan
provide the following:
a) The last possible date upon which that act, step or plan would
necessarily have been taken or implemented in order to have avoided
a violation of the Constitution;
b) The specific details of how such act, step or plan should have
been carried out including, (1) the specific methods of
accomplishing the objectives of the act, step or plan, (2) an
estimate of how long it would have taken to carry out the act, step
or plan, and (3) an estimate of the cost of carrying out the act,
step or plan;
Cc) For Hartford and each of the identified suburban school
districts, the specific number and percentage of poor, middle,
and/or upper class students who would, of necessity, have attended
school outside of the then existing school district in which they
resided in order for that act, step, or plan to successfully
address the requirements of the Constitution;
d) The specific criteria which should have been used to identify
those students who would, of necessity, have attended school
9
outside the then existing school district in which they resided,
so that the concentration of students from poor families in
Hartford Public Schools would be low enough to satisfy the
requirements of the Constitution.
RESPONSE: Please see response to Interrogatory 5, 5(a)-(c).
Plaintiffs have not, at this point, alleged that one specific
criterion or indicator must be used to identify students who
"would, of necessity" be transferred to another school district.
As stated in the Complaint, rates of family participation in the
federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children program is widely
accepted as a measure closely correlated with family poverty.
Participation in the federal school lunch program is also an index
of poverty status.
7. Please identify each and every affirmative act, step or
plan which the plaintiffs will claim at trial the defendants, their
predecessors, or any other state officer, agency or other body were
required by the State Constitution to take or implement to address
the conditions created by the concentration of "at risk" children
in the Hartford Public Schools but which were not in fact taken or
"implemented. For each such act, step, or plan provide the
following:
a) The last possible date upon which that act, step or plan would
necessarily have been taken or implemented in order to have avoided
a violation of the constitution;
b) The specific details of how such act, step or plan should have
been carried out including (1) the specific methods of
accomplishing the objective of the act, step or plan, (2) an
estimate as to how long it would have taken to carry out the act,
step or plan, and (3) an estimate of the cost of carrying out the
act, step or plan; :
C) The specific number and percentage of "at risk" Hartford
students who would, of necessity, have attended school outside of
the existing school district in which they resided in order for
that act, step or plan to successfully address the requirements of
the Constitution.
d) The specific criteria which should have been used to identify
those students who would, of necessity, have attended school
outside the then existing school district in which they resided so
that the concentration of "at risk" students in Hartford Public
Schools would be low enough to satisfy the requirements of the
Constitution.
RESPONSE: Please see response to Interrogatory 5, 5(a)-(c). As
set out in the Complaint in this action, all children, including
those deemed at risk of lower educational achievement, have the
10
capacity to learn if given a suitable education. Yet, the Hartford
public schools operate at a severe educational disadvantage in
addressing the educational needs of all students, due in part to
the sheer proportion of students who bear the burdens and
challenges of living in poverty. The increased need for special
programs, such as compensatory education, stretches Hartford school
resources even further. As also stated in the Complaint, the
demographic characteristics of the students in the Hartford public
schools differ sharply from students in the suburban schools by a
number of relevant measures, such as poverty status, whether a
child has limited English proficiency, and whether a child is from
a single-parent family. Plaintiffs have not, at this point,
alleged that one specific criterion or indicator must be used to
identify students who "would, of necessity" be transferred to
another school district.
CURRENT OR ONGOING VIOLATIONS
8. Using the 1987-88 data as a base, for Hartford and each
of the identified suburban school districts please specify the
number and percentage of black, Hispanic and white students who
must, of a necessity, attend school in a location outside of the
existing school district in which they reside in order to address
the condition of racial and -ethnic isolation which now exists in
accordance with the requirements of the Constitution.
[Please see plaintiffs' objection to 1Interrogatory 8,
Plaintiffs' Objections To Interrogatories, Filed September 20,
1990. ]
9. Using the 1987-88 data as a base, for Hartford and each
of the identified suburban school districts please specify the
number and percentage of poor, middle and/or upper class students
who must, of necessity, attend school outside of the existing
school district in which they reside in order to address the
condition of socio-economic isolation which exists in Hartford and
the identified suburban school districts in accordance with the
requirements of the Constitution. Also identify the specific
criteria which must be used to identify the pool of poor Hartford
students from which those students who would be required to attend
schools outside of the existing district in which they reside must
be chosen so as to address the condition of socio-economic
isolation in accordance with the requirements of the Constitution.
[Please see plaintiffs' objection to Interrogatory 9,
Plaintiffs' Objections To Interrogatories, Filed September 20,
1990. ]
11
10. Using the 1987-88 data as a base, identify the number and
percentage of "at risk" children in the Hartford Public Schools who
must, of necessity, attend school at a location outside the
existing Hartford School District lines in order to address the
concentration of "at risk" children in the Hartford Public Schools
in accordance with the requirements of the Constitution. Also
identify the specific criteria which must be used to identify the
pool of Hartford students from which those who would be required
to attend schools in the suburban school districts must be chosen
so as to address the concentration of "at risk" children in the
Hartford Public Schools.
[Please see plaintiffs' objection to Interrogatory 10,
Plaintiffs' Objections To Interrogatories, Filed September 20,
1990. ]
MINIMALLY ADEQUATE EDUCATION
11. Please identify each and every statistic the plaintiffs’
will rely on at trial to support any claim they intend to make that
the educational "inputs" (i.e. resources, staff, facilities,
curriculum, etc.) in the Hartford Public Schools are so deficient
that the children in Hartford are being denied a "minimally
adequate education." For each such fact specify the source(s)
and/or name and address of the person(s) that will be called upon
to attest to that statistic at trial.
[Please see response to Interrogatory 13.]
12. Please identify each and every statistic, other than the
results of the Mastery Test, which the plaintiffs will rely on at
trial to support any claim they intend to make that children in
Hartford are being denied a "minimally adequate education" because
of the educational "outputs" for Hartford. For each such fact
specify the source(s) and/or name and address of the person(s) that
will be called upon to attest to that statistic at trial.
[Please see response to Interrogatory 14.]
EQUAL EDUCATION
13. Please identify each and every category of educational
"inputs" which the plaintiffs will rely on at trial in their effort
to establish that the educational "inputs" in Hartford are not
equal to the educational "inputs" of the suburban school districts.
For each such category identify each and every statistical
comparison between Hartford and any or all of the suburban school
districts which the plaintiffs will rely on to show the alleged
inequality. For each such comparison identify the source(s) and/or
12
name and address of the person(s) that will be called upon to
attest to the accuracy of that statistical comparison at trial.
RESPONSE: As of the date of this response, plaintiffs are compiling
data and information on disparities and inequities in "educational
inputs" and resources among Hartford and the surrounding districts.
This data may include, but may not be limited to comparisons in the
following areas:
a. Facilities =-- data may include, but may not be
limited to comparisons of the condition and size of
school buildings, the condition and size of school
grounds, overcrowding and school capacity, maintenance,
the availability of specific instructional facilities and
physical education facilities, and special function areas
(e.g. types of counselling, libraries);
b. Equipment and Supplies;
c. Personnel -- data may include, but may not be limited
to comparisons of student teacher ratios, teaching staff
characteristics, and non-teacher staff number and
characteristics;
d. Curriculum -- data may include, but may not be
limited to comparisons of course offerings, textbooks and
course levels, and special programs;
e. Extracurricular Opportunities; and
f. School experience =-- data may include, but may not
be limited to comparisons of counselling services,
disciplinary rates, absentee rates, retention rates,
tardy rates, and the concentration of poverty.
At the present time, plaintiffs' investigation and analysis
of these categories has not been completed. The data and
information concerning disparity in "inputs" upon which plaintiffs
rely is equally available to defendants. Nevertheless, plaintiffs
will disclose such information in a timely manner prior to trial.
14. Please identify each and every category of educational
"outputs" other than the Mastery Test, which the plaintiffs will
rely on at trial in their effort to establish that the educational
"outputs" in Hartford are not equal to the educational "outputs"
of the suburban school districts. For each such category identify
each and every statistical comparison between Hartford and any one
or all of the suburban school districts which the plaintiffs will
rely on to show the alleged inequality. For each such comparison
identify the source(s) and/or name and address of the person(s)
that will be called upon to attest to the accuracy of that
13
statistical comparison at trial.
RESPONSE: As of the date of this response, plaintiffs are compiling
data and information on disparities and inequities in "educational
outputs" and other measures of achievement or educational quality
among Hartford and the surrounding districts, including but not
limited to the following areas of comparison: dropout rates and
percentage of students receiving a diploma; PSAT and SAT scores;
college attendance; employment outcomes; and career and life
outcomes.
At the present time, plaintiffs' investigation and analysis
of these categories has not been completed. Plaintiffs are also
exploring other social, economic and psychological measures.
Plaintiffs have not yet identified who will present analyses of
such data at trial, other than those experts listed in plaintiffs’
response to Interrogatories 18 and 19. Plaintiffs will disclose
such information in a timely manner prior to trial.
OTHER
15. Please identify each and every study, other document, or
information or person the plaintiffs will rely upon or call upon
at trial to support the claim that better integration will improve
the performance of urban black, Hispanic and/or socio-economically
disadvantaged children on standardized tests such as the Mastery
Test.
RESPONSE: As set out in the complaint, racial and economic
isolation in the schools adversely affects both educational
attainment and the life chances of children. At the present time,
plaintiffs' investigation and analysis of the precise nature of
this impact is incomplete. The studies, documents, information,
and persons upon whom the plaintiffs will rely at trial may
include, but are not limited to information listed in the response
to Interrogatory 19 and the following:
Crain, R.lL., and Braddock, J.H., McPartland, J.M., "A
Long Term View of School Desegregation: Some Recent
Studies of Graduates as Adults," 66 Phi Delta Kappan
259-264 (1984);
Crain, R.L., and Hawes, J.A., Miller, R.L., Peichert,
J.R., "Finding Niches: Desegregated Students Sixteen
Years Later," R-3243-NIE, Rand (January, 1985);
Crain, R.L., and Strauss, J., "School Desegregation and
Black Occupational Attainments: Results from a Long-
term Experiment," Reprinted from CSOS Report No. 359
(1985) ;
14
levine, D.U., Keeny, J., Kukuk, C., O'Hara Fort, B.,
Mares, K.R., Stephenson, R.S., "Concentrated Poverty and
Reading Achievement in Seven Big Cities," 11 Urban
Review 63 (1979).
"Poverty, Achievement and the Distribution of
Compensatory Education Services," National Assessment of
Chapter 1, Office of Educational Research and
Improvement, U.S. Dept. of Ed. (1986);
"Report on Negative Factors Affecting the Learning
Process," Hartford Board of Education (1987):
Connecticut State Department of Education (various
reports, past and present, including but not limited to
reports on racial, ethnic, and economic segregation,
racial balance, school resources, and educational
outcomes) .
16. Please identify each and every study, other document, or
information or person the plaintiffs will rely upon or call upon
at trial to support the claim that better integration will improve
the performance of urban black, Hispanic and/or socio-economically
disadvantaged children on any basis other than standardized tests.
[Please see response to Interrogatory 15.]
17. Please describe the precise mathematical formula used by
the plaintiffs to compute the ratios set forth in paragraph 42 of
the complaint.
RESPONSE: Plaintiffs' data was derived from the Connecticut State
Department of Education report of the 1988 Mastery Test Scores.
Plaintiffs will provide the precise mathematical formula used to
compute the ratios in a timely fashion.
EXPERT WITNESSES
18. Please specify the name and address of each and every
person the plaintiffs expect to call as an expert witness at trial.
For each such person please provide the following:
a) The date on which that person is expected to complete the
review, analysis, or consideration necessary to formulate the
opinions which that person will be called upon to offer at trial;
b) The subject matter upon which that person is expected to
15
testify; and
C) The substance of the facts and opinions to which that person
is expected to testify and a summary of the grounds for each
opinion.
[Plaintiffs have requested an extension of time to disclose
expert witnesses, by motion dated October 31, 1990.]
DATA COMPIIATIONS
19. In the event the plaintiffs intend to offer into evidence
at trial any data compilations or analyses which have been produced
by the plaintiffs or on the plaintiffs' behalf by any mechanical
or electronic means please describe the nature and results of each
such compilation and/or analysis and provide the following
additional information.
a) The specific kind of hardware used to produce each compilation
and/or analysis;
b) The specific software package or programming language which
was used to produce each compilation and/or analysis;
c) A complete list of all specific data elements used to produce
each compilation and/or analysis;
d) The specific methods of analyses and/or questions used to
create the data base for each compilation and/or analysis;
e) A complete list of the specific questions, tests, measures,
or other means of analysis applied to the data base to produce each
compilation and/or analysis;
f) Any and all other information the defendants would need to
duplicate the compilation or analysis;
g) The name, address, educational background and role of each and
every person who participated in the development of the data base
and/or program used to analyze the data for each compilation and/or
analysis; and
h) The name and address of each and every person expected to
testify at trial who examined the results of the compilation or
analysis and who reached any conclusions in whole or in part from
those results regarding the defendants' compliance with the law,
and, for each such person, provide a complete list of the
conclusions that person reached.
RESPONSE: Plaintiffs may offer into evidence compilations and
16
analyses including but not limited to analyses of data on the
educational and long-term effects of racial, ethnic, and economic
segregation. In addition, plaintiffs may offer into evidence
compilations and analyses on other elements of plaintiffs' case,
including the disparity in resources between Hartford and the
suburban schools. Plaintiffs are still planning research and
compiling and analyzing data drawn from the following sources and
will provide more detailed information in such research when it is
available. Such information will be provided in a timely fashion,
in advance of trial.
The data sets which form the basis for the analyses of the
educational and long-term effects of racial, ethnic, and economic
segregation include, but will not be limited to the following:
(1) The National Longitudinal Survey of Labor Force
Behavior -- Youth Cohort, an annual survey sponsored by
the U.S. Departments of Labor and Defense of 12,686 young
persons throughout the United States. Data available and
used in this research begins in 1979 and extends through
1987.
(2) The National Survey of Black Americans, a national
survey of 2,107 African Americans who are 18 years of age
or older. The survey was designed and conducted by the
survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research at.
the University of Michigan. Data was collected between
1979 and 1980.
(3) The High School and Beyond Study, a national
longitudinal probability sample of more than 58,000 1980
high school sophomores and seniors. Surveys were
conducted in 1980, 1982, 1984, and 1986.
(4) The National Longitudinal Survey of Employers, a
national probability sample of 4,087 employers. Surveys
were conducted in the 1970's.
Plaintiffs have requested an extension of time to disclose
expert witnesses and to disclose those experts who are
participating in the development of the analyses of these data
bases and/or are examining the results of such analyses.
Due to the early stage in the plaintiffs' investigation,
plaintiffs are currently unable to specify the kind of hardware
used to produce each analysis, the specific software package used,
the complete list of specific data elements used; and specific
methods of analysis. Plaintiffs will provide such information in
a timely fashion as it becomes available to the plaintiffs, in
advance of trial.
17
PLAINTIFFS, MILO SHEFF, ET AL
MARIANNE ENGELMAN LADO PHILIP D. TEGELER
RONALD ELLIS CONNECTICUT CIVIL LIBERTIES
NAACP Legal Defense & UNION FOUNDATION
Educational Fund, Inc. 32 Grand Street
99 Hudson Street Hartford, CT 06106
New York, NY 10013 (203) 247-9823
(212) 219-1900 Juris No. 102537
Pro Hac Vice
MARTHA STONE WESLEY W. HORTON
CONNECTICUT CIVIL LIBERTIES MOLLER, HORTON &
UNION FOUNDATION FINEBERG, P.C.
32 Grand Street 90 Gillett Street
Hartford, CT 06106 Hartford, CT 06105
(203) 247-9823 (203) 522-8338
Juris No. 61506 Juris No. 38478
WILFRED RODRIGUEZ JOHN BRITTAIN
HISPANIC ADVOCACY PROJECT UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT
Neighborhood Legal Services SCHOOL OF LAW :
1229 Albany Avenue 65 Elizabeth Street
Hartford, CT 06102 Hartford, CT 06105
(203) 278-6850 (203) 241-4664
Juris No. 302827 Juris No. 101153
ADAM S. COHEN JENNY RIVERA
HELEN HERSHKOFF PUERTO RICAN LEGAL
JOHN A. POWELL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES 99 Hudson Street
UNION FOUNDATION New York, NY 10013
132 West 43rd Street (212) 219-3360
New York, NY 10036 Pro Hac Vice
(212) 944-9800
Pro Hac Vice