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The Opportunity Gap

Is Your State Providing Equal Access to Education?

ProPublica analyzed federal education data from the 2009-2010 school year to examine whether states provide high-poverty schools equal access to advanced courses and special programs that researchers say will help them later in life. This is the first nationwide picture of exactly which courses are being taken at which schools and districts across the country. More than three-quarters of all public school children are represented. Read our story and our methodology.

From http://projects.propublica.org/schools. © Copyright 2011 Pro Publica Inc.

Find a school

Mc Nary High School

595 CHEMAWA RD N, KEIZER, ORE., 97303 | Grades 9-12

Districts with 3,000 or more students
Students Total Teachers Inexp. Teachers AP Courses
This School
2,085
94
6% 11
District 38.7K 1,867 10% 10
State 426K 20,551 7% 6
 
State Average
 
District Average

Percentage of relevant students who...

Get Free/Reduced Price Lunch

46%
58%

49%
State Avg: 46% District Avg: 58%

Take at Least One AP Course

16%
6%

4%
State Avg: 16% District Avg: 6%

Take Advanced Math

13%
8%

12%
State Avg: 13% District Avg: 8%

Are in a Gifted/Talented Program

9%
9%

16%
State Avg: 9% District Avg: 9%

Take Chemistry

12%
0%

0%
State Avg: 12% District Avg: 0%

Take Physics

6%
2%

2%
State Avg: 6% District Avg: 2%

Participate in sports

40%
0.0%

13%
State Avg: 40% District Avg: 0.0%

Are

2%
1%

2% Am Indian
State Avg: 2% District Avg: 1%
5%
2%

1% Asian
State Avg: 5% District Avg: 2%
3%
1%

1% Black
State Avg: 3% District Avg: 1%
20%
37%

28% Hispanic
State Avg: 20% District Avg: 37%
66%
53%

63% White
State Avg: 66% District Avg: 53%

McNary High School, part of the Salem-Keizer School District 24J, is located in Keizer, Oregon. The school reports enrolling 2,085 students in grades nine through 12, and it has 94 teachers on staff.

McNary High School is above the state average but below the district average in terms of the percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches. On average, 46 percent of students in Oregon are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch programs, whereas 49 percent of McNary High School students do. At the district level, 58 percent of students are eligible.

ProPublica's analysis found that all too often, states and schools provide poor students fewer educational programs like Advanced Placement, gifted and talented programs, and advanced math and science classes. Studies have linked participation in these programs with better outcomes later in life. Our analysis uses free and reduced-price lunch to estimate poverty at schools. We based our findings on the most comprehensive data set of access to advanced classes and special programs in U.S. public schools — known as the Civil Rights Data Set— released by the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights.

McNary High School offers 11 AP courses, and 4 percent of students participate in those classes.

McNary High School enrolls 12 percent of students in advanced math courses, and 2 percent of students take physics. The enrollment rate for the school's gifted and talented program is 16 percent.

McKay High School, in Salem, Ore., is a higher-poverty school than McNary High School, with 93 percent of its students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The school offers 14 AP courses, and 11 percent of students are enrolled in those courses.

These data points were reported by schools and districts to the Office for Civil Rights. For more information about the data, see our full methodology.

— Generated by Narrative Science