Discriminatory Housing Policy

When trying to address a problem it is important recognize the correct framing of the issue at hand. Moreover, for a more strategic policy approach, it is important to recognize the framing dependent on your individual and situational experience to the issue. The reality is that the risks of unhealthy schools affect poorer neighborhoods disproportionately more than higher-income neighborhoods due to lacking the support to fully implement an overall healthy school environment. These unjust, differing patterns of school experience contribute to the growing gaps in educational and health trajectories by income and race we see in kids across the country. These differences are the result from a continuing history of policy decisions and institutional …show more content…
Today, local community taxes are responsible for a majority of costs regarding school facilities--42% of operating costs including staffing and 82% of capital costs including buildings, facilities, and equipment (Filardo, 2016). However, this funding mechanism proves to be problematic as we consider that decades of state sanctioned discriminatory housing policies from racial segregation to redlining and predatory lending have had an intergenerational sorting effect on neighborhoods. Such policies pushed lower income and populations of color/ethnic minorities to become concentrated in disinvested low resourced neighborhoods while predominantly white, higher income populations select in to higher resourced neighborhoods. As a result, resources dedicated per student can vary vastly depending on where the student …show more content…
In response to nation-wide recessions, poorer districts have had to face budget cuts and continue to further spread their resources thin among their schools’ staff, programs and infrastructure that play a critical role in being able to uphold quality standards of school wellness and enrich their students educational experience. A concerning observation is that while affluent school districts invest highly in enhancements including performing arts centers, kitchen infrastructure, labs, recreational facilities, and school gardens, low income districts require the funding for overdue basic infrastructure repairs such as asbestos removal or new roofs instead of maintaining the necessary staffing, programs and amenities needed to meet basic school wellness policies regarding nutrition and physical education (Smith,