Go to Indicator definition
Scale Range: 0.0% – 92.8%
Definition: Exposure is a segregation measure referring to the degree of potential contact, or the possibility of interaction, between group members of two racial groups. For instance, a black-white exposure index of 60% signifies that the average black child in the metro area attends a school which is 60% white. Higher values (closer to 100%) indicate higher exposure of the first group to the second group. Exposure to ones own group is also termed the "isolation index."
Notes: Primary schools defined as those with lowest grade of "Pre-K" through 3 and highest grade of "Pre-K" through 8. Indices in metro areas with small numbers of specified racial/ethnic groups should be used with caution. Data for 1999-2001 geocoded from zip codes to metropolitan areas. Excludes metro areas in which 10% or more of students attended schools for which race/ethnicity data was not reported. Pre-K students not included for metros in the following states in the specified years: 1999-2000: AL, CA, KY, WY. 2000-2001: AL, CA, KY, WY, TN. 2007-2008: CA, MI, SD. 2010-2011: CA, OR, MI. Data for multi-racial students only collected for all states as of 2010-2011.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data. Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey.