A few weeks ago I came across a local newspaper entitled Word on the Street which “aims to
educate the community and expose the underlying causes of homelessness.” The front
page story of the issue was titled “Lack of affordable housing key to
homelessness and poverty”. It explored the
history of budget allocations for the Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD) and how they have attributed to a stark increase in homelessness in
Baltimore. In particular, the article mentions the effects of the HOPE VI program
initiated in the 1990s. HOPE VI manifested itself in Baltimore with the
demolition of existing housing projects and replaced them with mixed-income developments,
which displaced over 20,000 residents, of which only a small fraction of would
end up living in the HOPE VI sites.
As a proponent of the Harlem
Children’s Zone (HCZ) and community schools, I couldn’t help but see homelessness
and/or frequent relocation as significant obstacle that would have to be
addressed. Not only does this affect children’s ability to focus one getting to
school and to focus in school, but it also compromises the continuity of a
child’s education. Part of the allure of what Geoffrey Canada has been able to
set up so successfully in Harlem is that there is sustained support for
children and their families. These supports, from parenting information to test
prep to healthcare access, are able to have a compounding effect for the children
and families in the neighborhood, but what if you have to move out of the
neighborhood? In my opinion, what is so critical about the HCZ and the concept
of community schools is that they provide the stability to build up positive
momentum over a long period of time. Unfortunately, families that move in and out
would have a difficult time building up enough momentum to see significant educational
outcomes.
For community schools or HCZ-like
endeavors to be successful in Baltimore, I believe ensuring that students have
stable living accommodations must be
a priority. While this may not be an issue in some communities, in others this
is sure to be a significant challenge. Although the HUD programs of the past
may not have been helpful in this area, this agency could be a very strong ally
for school and community leaders. After all, the Department of Education
shouldn’t be the only one looking out for the best interests of children.
You can find more information
about Word on the Street at http://wordonthestreetbaltimore.wordpress.com/
2 comments:
Housing has been a huge issue in Baltimore City for as long as I can remember. It is easy to see the steady decline of entire communities - entire blocks boarded up and abandoned. For most of who are fortunate to have a home these abandoned houses are simply relics of a city that has seen better days. For others, without the certainty of housing, they must represent something entirely more haunting - displaced families and communities.As a lifelong citizen of the city, I find the housing situation dismal. This is doubled by my role as an educator. I am hopelessly aware that many of the children we serve do not have adequate housing. We know the heartbreaking effects this can have on the trajectory of a child's education/life but we do not yet know how to adequately address the issue. It is admittedly difficult to discern the housing status of many students and even more intimidating to broach the topic with parents. This often means that many homeless children are never identified and wander aimlessly through the system. Some schools do attempt to this problem through home visits, etc. However, that practice is sporadic throughout the system and requires a dedicated staff. I personally believe home visits should be implemented in all schools - at least for those students with little parent involvement. I agree that it would also be helpful for BCPSS and HUD to form some type of arrangement to help publicize and stem this problem. I am not particularly hopeful that such an arrangement will actually come to fruition however. I believe that this, like so much of the work we do as teachers, will have to be done on the macro level.
Brian, your post makes so much sense. Of course students will not be able to pay attention in school if they are more preoccupied with not having a home to return to at the end of the day. Just as Maslow suggests in his hierarchy of needs, if people’s primary needs are not met, there is no way they will be able to tend to needs that fall higher in the hierarchy. Until we put into place social systems that satisfy our students’ basic needs—home, food, and safety—we cannot expect our students to be able to give all of their attention to their school work. I am a huge supporter of the Harlem Children’s Zone for this very reason; it provides necessary social support structures so that students may flourish academically. With this thought in mind, we should see how we could involve similar social programs for our students here in Baltimore.
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