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A New Wave of School Integration: Districts and Charters Pursuing Socioeconomic Diversity

February 9, 2016

Students in racially and socioeconomically integrated schools experience academic, cognitive, and social benefits that are not available to students in racially isolated, high-poverty environments. A large body of research going back five decades underscores the improved experiences that integrated schools provide. And yet, more than sixty years after Brown v. Board of Education, American public schools are still highly segregated by both race and class. In fact, by most measures of integration, our public schools are worse off, since they are now even more racially segregated than they were in the 1970s, and economic segregation in schools has risen dramatically over the past two decades.In this report, we highlight the work that school districts and charter schools across the country are doing to promote socioeconomic and racial integration by considering socioeconomic factors in student assignment policies.Key findings of this report include:Our research has identified a total of 91 districts and charter networks across the country that use socioeconomic status as a factor in student assignment. The 91 school districts and charter schools with socioeconomic integration policies enroll over 4 million students. The school districts and charter networks identified as employing socioeconomic integration are located in 32 different states. The majority of districts and charters on the list have racially and socioeconomically diverse enrollments. The majority of the integration strategies observed fall into five main categories: attendance zone boundaries, district-wide choice policies, magnet school admissions, charter school admissions, and transfer policies.The push toward socioeconomic and racial integration is perhaps the most important challenge facing American public schools. Segregation impedes the ability of children to prepare for an increasingly diverse workforce; to function tolerantly and enthusiastically in a globalizing society; to lead, follow, and communicate with a wide variety of consumers, colleagues, and friends. The democratic principles of this nation are impossible to reach without universal access to a diverse, high quality, and engaging education.

CHA Residents and the Plan for Transformation

January 1, 2013

This series of policy briefs presents findings from more than a decade of research on the people who lived in Chicago Housing Authority properties when the agencylaunched its Plan for Transformation in October 1999. The ongoing, multiyear effort sought to improve resident well-being by renovating or demolishing decaying public housing properties and replacing them with new, mixed-income development.

Improving the Lives of Public Housing's Most Vulnerable Families

January 1, 2013

The CHA's ambitious Plan for Transformation necessitated relocating thousands of vulnerable families. Although the conditions residents were living in at the outset were deplorable, the relocation was involuntary and was a major disruption to theirlives.Many residents were extremely vulnerable, suffering from serious mental and physical health problems that could be exacerbated by major stress.The CHA had littleexperience in providing effective relocation services and even less in providing wraparound case management that could help stabilize residents' lives and help them move toward self-sufficiency. Given these circumstances, there were reasons for serious concern about how residents would fare and whether they might end up even worse off as a result of relocation.Our ten-yearstudy of CHA families shows that most residents are better off overall as a result of the Plan for Transformation; they live in higher-quality housing in neighborhoods that are generally safer and offer a bette rquality of life for them and their children. However, incorporating intensive supportive services for the most vulnerable public housing residents produces additional gains.Our findings indicate positive outcomes on a range of adult health and employment-related outcomes that are key to improving family stability.

Release Planning for Successful Reentry: A Guide for Corrections, Service Providers, and Community Groups

September 26, 2008

Outlines the concept of release planning, identifies the fundamental needs released prisoners face in reentering society, and recommends ways for corrections agencies and community organizations to help meet those needs through improved release planning.

Broken Bonds: Understanding and Addressing the Needs of Children With Incarcerated Parents

February 1, 2008

Describes the shared characteristics of children with parents in prison, reviews current research on the emotional and behavioral challenges they face, and discusses what charities, practitioners, and policy makers can do to address those challenges.

Understanding the Experiences and Needs of Children of Incarcerated Parents: Views From Mentors

February 1, 2008

Provides qualitative insights from mentors on how parental incarceration affects children emotionally, behaviorally, and developmentally, as well as their relationships with their parents, and how their needs differ from those of other at-risk children.