School choice proponents say it offers families more options – but those don’t always extend to immigrant students

Educators, politicians and education observers have long debated school choice.

This controversial policy approach lets families pick alternatives to their assigned neighborhood public schools and, in some cases, allows them to use government funds to pay for private school tuition or other educational expenses.

Some of the school choice debate has focused on whether charter schools – meaning publicly funded, independently operated schools – offer students more equitable educational opportunities and better academic outcomes than traditional public schools.

Not much of the debate has focused on how school choice can affect immigrant students.

We are scholars of social studies education and educational foundations.

In our forthcoming research, we examined the impact of school choice on the academic outcomes of immigrant students, primarily from low-income families.

We found that school choice often leaves them behind, as they struggle to succeed academically in often less-than-ideal educational environments.

A study of Charleston schools

From 2024 through 2025, we analyzed the impact that school choice is having on immigrant students in our city, Charleston, South Carolina.

Though South Carolina’s foreign-born population is smaller than it is in some states, it has increased by more than 900% since 1980.

Approximately 7.2% of the residents in Charleston County are foreign-born.

School choice and the rise of charter and magnet schools can heavily influence immigrant students’ experiences in Charleston schools.

As in many parts of the country, charter schools have expanded across Charleston since 1996, when lawmakers first allowed them in the state.

In 2025, South Carolina passed a bill that allows many state residents to use virtual vouchers – or, as they are also called, educational scholarship funds – that people use to pay for scholarships at private schools or, in some cases, to cover home-schooling expenses.

Charter schools have increased inequality and racial and socioeconomic inequality within school systems, some research shows.

In our opinion, this new voucher plan will likely exacerbate these issues.

Another challenge in Charleston is the rise of magnet schools.

Magnet schools and inequality

Magnet schools are free, public schools that are often specialized in their scope, and they admit students from a range of neighborhoods.

Magnets, similar to charter schools, can be completely separate schools with their own buildings, or housed within a particular section of a traditional public school.

Unlike charter schools, magnet schools often, but not always, determine prospective students’ acceptance based on certain academic criteria, including how well they score on standardized testing and the student’s GPA. Other magnet schools select students based on a lottery.

Magnet schools, whether at the elementary, middle or high school level, tend to attract students from wealthier homes and draw particularly white populations.

One reason is that admission to magnet schools – including Academic Magnet High School, Charleston County’s top public high school – is typically based on test scores.

It is often more difficult for students from low-income families, including some immigrant students, to score well on the tests and qualify for these schools.

Since high-performing magnet schools tend to enroll the most privileged students and experienced staff, other nearby public schools might experience drawbacks, like decreased enrollment and more staff turnover.

A sharp divide

Just about a mile from Academic Magnet is North Charleston High School, a traditional public high school that is required to enroll any local resident.

The school has about 830 students, a number smaller than are actually zoned for the school. It also has some of the highest rates of poverty and lowest test scores in the state.

Many students in the area instead attend charter schools, magnet schools or even other traditional public schools that perform better academically, which these students can often attend – if they have their own transportation.

This dynamic often creates various challenges for students who remain at struggling neighborhood schools. These issues include worse student academic performance, reduced teacher retention and increased racial and socioeconomic segregation.

Our findings

In our forthcoming study, we examined the academic performance and demographics of three Charleston area schools: North Charleston, Academic Magnet and Fort Dorchester, a neighborhood public high school.

Approximately 92.5% of the students at North Charleston are Black or Hispanic.

About half the students at Fort Dorchester are Black or Hispanic.

Meanwhile, only 8.9% of the students at Academic Magnet are Black or Hispanic.

Approximately 100% of the students at North Charleston are economically disadvantaged, meaning they qualify for free or reduced lunch. This compares with 60% of students at Fort Dorchester and 13% at Academic Magnet.

While 39.7% of the teachers at North Charleston left after three years, 18.6% of teachers left during this time frame at Fort Dorchester, and another 13.8% at Academic Magnet.

We wanted to examine how these schools’ academic and demographic differences affect immigrant students and their academic performance.

We found that English language proficiency among non-native English-speaking students at North Charleston was 3.4%. Overall, approximately 9.3% of students there had a level 4 or higher English language score, out of a total six possible points.

At Fort Dorchester, the numbers were much higher: 16.9% of non-native students were proficient in English, and and overall, 34.4% were at level 4 or above in English.

At Academic Magnet, due to the lack of non-native English speakers, no data was available.

We also interviewed some of the teachers in the “left behind” schools like North Charleston in the district. One shared that immigrant students or children of immigrants started having issues, like skipping school or engaging in disruptive behavior, that they saw other kids doing in these schools.

As one teacher said: “I try to get them to understand, this is not all America … I would just feel so bad for that.”

Broadening school choice conversations

We believe that school choice discussions should include immigrant students and magnet schools. In the often-tense discussions on school choice, public school advocates often see magnet schools in a positive light.

However, our study indicates that school choice can often lead to greater segregation and inequality. School choice proponents often laud the benefits of those who use it, but they rarely discuss those who are left behind.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.