This highly focused collection of papers, commissioned by the National Urban League, offers a candid and courageous portrait of black education in transition

1: Black Education: A Quest for Equity and Excellence; 2: Taking the Initiative in Education: The National Urban League Agenda; 3: A Leadership Blueprint for Equity and Excellence in Black Higher Education; 4: Equity in Education: A Low Priority in the School Reform Movement; 5: Educational Policy Trends in a Neoconservative Era; 6: Legislating for Effective Schools and Academic Excellence; 7: Black Teachers: A Vanishing Tradition; 8: Improving Black Education: Perspectives on Parent Involvement; 9: Test Fairness and Bias: Measuring Academic Achievement Among Black Youth; 10: Sorting Black Students for Success and Failure: The Inequity of Ability Grouping and Tracking; 11: The Eroding Status of Blacks in Higher Education: An Issue of Financial Aid; 12: The Intended and Unintended Benefits of School Desegregation; 13: The Case for a Separate Black School System; 14: Desegregating with Magnet and One-Race Elementary and Secondary Schools; 15: The Consent Decree as a Tool for Desegregation in Higher Education; 16: Elements of Effective Black Schools; 17: School Power: A Model for Improving Black Student Achievement; 18: Reintegration for Education: Black Community Involvement with Black Students in Schools; 19: Memphis Inner-City Schools Improvement- Project: A Holistic Approach for Developing Academic Excellence; 20: A Community Initiative:Making a Difference in the Quality of Black Education; 21: Black School Pushouts And Dropouts: Strategies For Reduction; 22: Black Teenage Pregnancy: A Challenge for Educators; About the Authors