@article{THESIS,
      recid = {5823},
      author = {Van Baalen, Kaitlyn},
      title = {The Importance of Place: How Chicago’s Subsidized Housing  Programs Impact Elementary School Experiences},
      publisher = {University of Chicago},
      school = {B.A.},
      address = {2022-04},
      number = {THESIS},
      abstract = {<p>Students and parents rely on public schools to be  catalysts of social mobility, but too often already  disadvantaged students are served by the poorest-performing  schools. This paper assesses how the spatial placement of  subsidized housing in Chicago—including traditional public  housing, privately owned subsidized rental units, and  Housing Choice Vouchers—impacts the elementary educational  experience of residents. A multivariate spatial analysis of  subsidized housing and school quality reveals that some of  the city’s poorest-performing schools, as measured by  standardized test scores in reading and math, serve some of  the highest concentrations of subsidized housing residents.  In addition, elementary schools attended by residents of  subsidized housing have, on average, lower test scores,  higher percentages of Black students, and higher  percentages of students receiving free or reduced price  lunch than the city average. Residents of traditional  public housing fare the worst, while residents of privately  owned subsidized housing and Housing Choice Voucher holders  attend slightly higher-performing schools. Interviews with  four parents of Chicago elementary students, including  residents of both subsidized and market-rate housing,  suggest that both school quality and a safe neighborhood  environment are highly important to parents, but that  affordable options near desirable schools are limited. The  findings support a reevaluation of Chicago’s housing  programs to prioritize access to effective schools with new  project-based developments, transfer resources to  tenant-based subsidies with greater residential choice,  provide relocation counseling to all residents who want it,  and increase the supply of affordable housing in  high-opportunity neighborhoods.</p>},
      url = {http://knowledge.uchicago.edu/record/5823},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.6082/uchicago.5823},
}