HOPE VI Neighborhoods and Neighborhood Schools: Understanding How Revitalized Neighborhoods Influence School Environments

Abstract

This article poses the central question, How do neighborhoods (specifically, different public housing designs) shape parents’ social interactions and social networks? To answer this question, we interviewed families residing in a HOPE VI neighborhood and an adjacent Section 8 apartment complex, all of whom had at least one child attending the close-by neighborhood school (Crawford Elementary School, a pseudonym). We then compared the results of the HOPE VI neighborhood study against the interviews conducted with the school families in the adjacent Section 8 apartment complex. Findings suggest that the community structures of the HOPE VI neighborhood foster positive social interactions and the formation of social networks among residents, which was not the case with respect to the neighborhood structures of the non–HOPE VI community. Parents in both communities were usually busy with work and children and other concerns, but non–HOPE VI parents responded to these pressures by keeping to themselves, whereas HOPE VI residents evinced a greater openness to engaging with neighbors—neighbors who have some of the same goals for the future (e.g., homeownership, maintaining steady employment) and who share an ongoing positive residential experience.

Notes

HOPE VI is the acronym for Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere.

Only scant information exists about the potential spillover to neighborhood schools associated with HOPE VI revitalization efforts. To date, investigation of the effects of HOPE VI redevelopment on local schools has been limited to two sites: St. Louis and Atlanta (Turbov & Piper, 2005). However, these two sites—in which housing authorities and private enterprise partnered to create new local schools—represent the exception rather than the rule with respect to HOPE VI urban renewal projects. Little is known about whether collateral effects from housing redevelopment actually filter through to neighborhood schools with respect to resource and staffing patterns, student engagement and outcomes, and parental involvement. This call for new HOPE VI research specifically addresses this critical knowledge gap.

The Section 8 voucher program is a federal housing program designed to assist very low-income families afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market. Voucher participants are free to choose any private rental housing that meets the requirements of the program, including apartments, townhouses, and single-family homes.