Case 2:71-cv ILRL-JCW Document Filed 11/07/13 Page 1 of 5 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA

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1 Case 2:71-cv ILRL-JCW Document Filed 11/07/13 Page 1 of 5 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA OLESS BRUMFIELD, et al., Plaintiffs, CIVIL ACTION and No THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle Plaintiff-Intervenor, Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Wilkinson, Jr. v. WILLIAM J. DODD, Superintendent of Public Education, et al., Defendants. DECLARATION OF JOHN WHITE I, John White, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1746, hereby declare as follows: 1. I am the State Superintendent of the Louisiana Department of Education ( the Department. 2. As State Superintendent, I am responsible for ensuring that the Department follows all laws, policies, and procedures, affecting education in the State of Louisiana, including the Injunction Order issued by the Court in this matter on December 2, 1975, which prohibited the State from providing material aid to private, racially segregated schools and required the State to establish a certification procedure to ensure that only private schools open to children of all races may participate in the State s assistance program. 1

2 Case 2:71-cv ILRL-JCW Document Filed 11/07/13 Page 2 of 5 3. As State Superintendent, I am also responsible for overseeing the Louisiana Scholarship Program, formally known as the Student Scholarships for Education Excellence Program ( Scholarship Program. 4. Nonpublic schools must comply with the Brumfield v. Dodd certification procedure to become eligible for state funding and support. The certification procedure requires nonpublic schools to submit a notarized Brumfield v. Dodd Application and proof of the school s policy of non-discrimination (as appeared in a public notice, such as a newspaper advertisement to the Louisiana Department of Education. 5. The Department submits Brumfield v. Dodd Applications, with attachments, to the United States Department of Justice for review and comment. If the U.S. raises a question or concern about a particular school, the Department works with the school and the U.S. to ensure that all concerns are addressed. Based on the recollection of current Department employees, which extends back twenty years, the U.S. Department of Justice has not objected to any Brumfield v. Dodd certification. The Department also submits copies of the Brumfield v. Dodd Applications to Professor George Strickler, Jr., counsel for the private Brumfield v. Dodd plaintiffs. 6. Once the U.S. Department of Justice indicates that it does not object to the applications, the Department submits a list of nonpublic schools which meet the qualifications to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE with a recommendation for approval during regularly scheduled Board meetings. Once a nonpublic school is approved by BESE, the school is placed on a list of Brumfield v. Dodd-Approved Schools. Brumfield v. Dodd Approved Schools are required to submit an annual 2

3 Case 2:71-cv ILRL-JCW Document Filed 11/07/13 Page 3 of 5 compliance report to the Department certifying that the school continues to maintain a nondiscriminatory enrollment policy. 7. The Department forwards the annual Brumfield v. Dodd compliance reports and any racial discrimination complaints made against any applicant or Brumfield v. Dodd Approved School to the U.S. Department of Justice each year. The U.S. Department of Justice made no objection to the compliance reports submitted for Brumfield v. Dodd Approved Schools for the or school years, or for any other school year, as far back as the Department s current employees recall. 8. Only Brumfield v. Dodd Approved Schools are eligible to participate in the Scholarship Program. A total of 117 Brumfield v. Dodd Approved Schools participated in the Scholarship Program in the school year. The majority of these schools have been educating Louisiana students for a decade or more 86 percent for ten or more years, 73 percent for 25 or more years, and 47 percent for at least a half century. A total of 126 schools are participating in the Scholarship Program for the school year 125 nonpublic Brumfield v. Dodd Approved Schools and one public school. The U.S. Department of Justice has not objected to the Brumfield v. Dodd certification of any school participating in the Program. 9. Louisiana families wishing to participate in the Scholarship Program must submit an application to the Department. To be eligible for a scholarship, a student must have a family income that does not exceed 250% of the federal poverty guidelines; and is either entering kindergarten or was enrolled in a C, D, or F public school in Louisiana on October 1 and February 1 of the most recent school year or is a continuing scholarship student. 3

4 Case 2:71-cv ILRL-JCW Document Filed 11/07/13 Page 4 of The scholarship award process is conducted through a random lottery in which only limited preferences are given (e.g., to children from public schools that received a D or F and to siblings of children already at the participating school. Student characteristics such as race or national origin are not a factor in the lottery. 11. During the school year, more than 10,000 students applied for a scholarship, and the State offered more than 5,700 scholarships to eligible students. Of those students, approximately 4,900 students accepted scholarships and enrolled in a participating school. The Scholarship students in grades 1-12 in the school year came from over 450 different public schools. 12. During the school year, almost 12,000 students applied for a scholarship, and the State offered more than 8,500 scholarships to eligible students. Of those students, approximately 6,800 students have accepted scholarships and enrolled in a participating school. 13. Over 90% of scholarship students for the school year were minority students, the vast majority of whom were African American; and more than 85% of scholarship students for the school year are African American. 14. The Department collects and maintains racial demographic information for all Louisiana public schools. Based upon the information provided to the Department, Cecilia Primary School located in St. Martin Parish, had a total of 740 students, 225 of whom were black in the school year; and Independence Elementary School located in Tangipahoa Parish, had a total of 496 students, 307 of whom were black and 104 of whom were white in the school year. 4

5 Case 2:71-cv ILRL-JCW Document Filed 11/07/13 Page 5 of The Scholarship Program is a statewide program. Of the 34 school districts identified by the United States as operating under federal desegregation decree, Doc. No at 4 nn.3-4, 24 of these school districts have school year Scholarship recipients living within their boundaries. A total of 1,111 scholarships were awarded to students living in one of these school districts. 16. To the best of our knowledge, of the thirty-four desegregation suits identified by the United States, Doc. No at 4 nn.3-4, the State of Louisiana is a party to only three. In two of those cases, the State s participation concerns the Recovery School District s takeover of failing schools in the school districts. The State was brought into Moore v. Tangipahoa Parish School Board, No (E.D. La., as a result of challenges to Acts 1 and 2 of the 2012 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature. I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the foregoing is true and correct. Executed on November 7, s/ John White JOHN WHITE 5