School Satisfaction in Cities and Suburbs (Ranked by City, From Most to Least Dissatisfied)
| NOTE: Includes households with children from birth to age 16. “City” refers to a central city in a metropolitan statistical area. “Suburb” refers to the remainder of the metropolitan statistical area except in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles-long Beach, and Newark. In these four areas, the “suburbs” include only the “urbanized suburbs"; the small “other urban” and “rural” portions of thes metropolitan statistical areas were not available for confidentiality reasons. *The data do not permit separate analysis of these cities. ---Indicates the sample was too small to provide a reliable estimate. |
| Households Dissatisfied With Public Elementary Schools | ||||
| City Only | Suburbs Only | |||
| City | Number | Percent | Number | Percent |
| Cleveland | 17,800 | 34.20% | 14,900 | 9.10% |
| Oakland, Calif. | 14,900 | 31.6 | 29,000 | 15.4 |
| Cincinnati | 9,900 | 26.2 | 10,500 | 7.6 |
| Philadelphia | 46,600 | 25.7 | 32,800 | 9.5 |
| Chicago | 64,400 | 23.6 | 24,800 | 6.4 |
| Minneapolis | 6,500 | 22.7 | 13,300 | 5.6 |
| Pittsburgh | 7,500 | 22.3 | 21,500 | 9 |
| San Francisco | 11,200 | 22.3 | 13,900 | 15.3 |
| St. Louis | 8,200 | 21.7 | 23,800 | 8.6 |
| Arlington, Texas | 3,500 | 21.7 | 9,700 | 10.7 |
| St. Paul, Minn. | 6,700 | 21 | 13,300 | 5.6 |
| Denver | 9,000 | 20.6 | 14,300 | 8.8 |
| New Orleans | 11,700 | 20.3 | 25,000 | 24 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach* | 92,000 | 19.9 | 43,000 | 8.3 |
| Boston | 9,100 | 19.5 | 36,600 | 9.2 |
| Buffalo, N. Y. | 6,000 | 18.9 | 3,000 | 4.1 |
| Seattle-Everett* | 8,500 | 18.8 | 22,200 | 10.8 |
| Kansas City, Kan. | 2,400 | 18.6 | 13,500 | 8.9 |
| Rochester, N. Y. | 4,500 | 17.7 | 4,100 | 4.3 |
| Washington | 8,200 | 17.7 | 33,100 | 8.3 |
| Milwaukee | 11,900 | 17.4 | 6,900 | 7.1 |
| Detroit | 25,900 | 17.3 | 34,800 | 8.7 |
| Providence-Warwick, R. I.* | 4,000 | 17.2 | 8,700 | 10 |
| Kansas City, Mo. | 8,100 | 16.9 | 13,500 | 8.9 |
| Memphis, Tenn. | 11,300 | 16.7 | 5,600 | 8.4 |
| Columbus, Ohio | 11,000 | 16.6 | 6,900 | 6.5 |
| Portland, Ore. | 7,100 | 16.4 | 19,000 | 12.8 |
| Dallas | 18,500 | 16.4 | 25,700 | 10.5 |
| Atlanta | 5,700 | 16 | 32,400 | 9.3 |
| Baltimore | 12,500 | 15.7 | 16,100 | 8 |
| Oklahoma City | 8,700 | 15.4 | 7,200 | 10.3 |
| St. Petersburg, Fla. | 3,100 | 15.3 | 21,400 | 14 |
| Birmingham, Ala. | 4,700 | 15.2 | 10,200 | 10.9 |
| New York | 114,300 | 14.6 | 10,900 | 8.2 |
| Indianapolis | 12,600 | 14.5 | 7,100 | 7 |
| Phoenix | 13,600 | 14.4 | 14,200 | 11 |
| Sacramento, Calif. | 5,700 | 13.9 | 19,900 | 14.9 |
| Hartford, Conn. | 1,900 | 13.7 | 9,700 | 8.2 |
| San Jose, Calif. | 12,200 | 13.5 | 6,200 | 10 |
| Houston | 22,300 | 13.1 | 14,000 | 5.5 |
| Anaheim, Calif. | 3,800 | 12.8 | 17,400 | 8.1 |
| San Bernardino- Ontario, Calif.* | 4,600 | 11.4 | 34,600 | 11.7 |
| Mesa, Ariz. | 4,900 | 11.4 | 14,200 | 11 |
| Miami | 3,700 | 11.3 | 24,700 | 13.1 |
| Sunnyvale, Calif. | 1,400 | 10.9 | 6,200 | 10 |
| San Diego | 11,300 | 10.7 | 17,500 | 11.5 |
| Salt Lake City | 1,800 | 10.6 | 10,700 | 8.5 |
| Fort Worth, Texas | 6,400 | 10.4 | 9,700 | 10.7 |
| Norfolk, Va. | 2,500 | 9.6 | 9,300 | 9.7 |
| San Antonio | 10,800 | 9.4 | 4,200 | 7.6 |
| Virginia Beach, Va. | 4,100 | 8.3 | 9,300 | 9.7 |
| Tampa, Fla. | 2,500 | 8.1 | 21,400 | 14 |
| Riverside, Calif. | 1,600 | 6.5 | 34,600 | 11.7 |
| Santa Ana, Calif. | 1,400 | 4.5 | 17,400 | 8.1 |
| Newark, N. J. | --- | --- | 10,800 | 6.3 |
| United States | 1,120,800 | 12.8 | 1,196,600 | 7.8 |
| SOURCE: Anthony P. Carnevale and Donna M. Desrochers (1999) analysis of the American Housing Survey, 1990-1996. | ||||
