April 20, 2015

HARTFORD, CT – The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, the Connecticut Fair Housing Center, and Open Communities Alliance, this week released an updated analysis of access to “opportunity” in Connecticut.  The analysis, which maps neighborhood conditions and access to opportunity by census tract using 12 indicators across five opportunity levels, provides Connecticut communities and policymakers with critical data on local resources. 

You probably have an intuitive sense that there are differences between neighborhoods — but it is often hard to discern exactly what those differences are.

It is crucial, however, to define these differences through data because 50 years of social science research shows that where we live matters greatly. It is connected to outcomes as fundamental as how long a person lives, whether a young child’s brain develops optimally, and whether children can attend fully resourced schools.

Click here to read the full article!

On April 23^rd, Open Communities Alliance will be taking part in a panel discussion on mobility counseling and how it can be used to access thriving communities, featuring national mobility expert Jennifer O’Neil.  The panel discussion will be part of a conference on fair housing, sponsored by the Fair Housing Association of Connecticut.  Details are available here.

No persons of any race other than the white race shall use or occupy any building or any lot, except that this covenant shall not prevent occupancy by domestic servants of a different race domiciled with an owner or tenant.  Racial Covenant, West Hartford 1940 (provided by Professor Jack Dougherty of Trinity College in On the Line).

A new report released this week by CT Voices for Children finds that Connecticut schools are deeply segregated and schools with greater minority and low-income populations are less likely to have funding to provide critical learning resources like small class sizes and experienced teachers.

The report identifies segregated housing patterns as a major contributing factor to such educational disparities.

Learn more about Mobility Counseling - A Strategy that Works to Create Access to Opportunity

Join us!  Wednesday, January 28th at 9:00 (coffee & conversation @ 8:30) at the Lyceum, 227 Lawrence Street, Hartford, CT 06106 

Register Now!

Balancing Investments in People and Place

Hackathon team creates an app to assist low income families find housing in thriving areas.