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Center for Urban Research and Learning (CURL),
Loyola University Chicago


Director: Dr. Phil Nyden

CURL | LOYOLA | BIOGRAPHY | COURSE | PROJECT

General Course Description
Syllabus
Readings
Powerpoint presentations
Student Reports

Unique Community-Engaged Course to Explore both Local and International Aspects of Equitable Community Development
Soc 370, Fall 2004, Tuesdays 1:30-5:00

Equitable Community Development will explore policies and strategies that produce a high quality of life and maximum opportunities for all residents of local communities, including low-income families. The special course is part of a new Center for Urban Research and Learning international project funded by the U.S. Department of Education and the European Commission.

The course will link university-community partnerships in four cities--Chicago, Washington DC, Liverpool (UK), and Seville (Spain). Students, faculty, and community leaders in each city will be working together to explore policies and organizing strategies-both those already in place as well those proposed. There will be regular communication among students and faculty in all four cities. All students will be actively engaged in community-based policy projects in Chicago neighborhoods.

Our Chicago partners will be the Organization of the NorthEast and the Logan Square Neighborhood Association--organizations that have been active in the Rogers Park, Edgewater, Uptown, and Logan Square communities of Chicago. They have also been key organizers of the Balanced Development Campaign which has successfully encouraged local government leaders to enact equitable development strategies in Chicago.

Topics covered by the course will include: an overview of reinvestment without displacement strategies; equitable development as a tool to reduce economic, racial, and ethnic segregation; role of various institutions in encouraging or discouraging equitable development; community organizing strategies to bring about change; affordable housing; sustaining racially and ethnically diverse neighborhoods; equitable business development; and education and equity.
Background information on the project, partner cities, and participating community organizations will be made available in coming weeks on CURL's web page. The hope is that this course and project will lead to ongoing connections with our partners in the other cities, even after the semester.

The course is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. Space is limited in this course, so you are encouraged to register as soon as possible. If you have any questions feel free to e-mail or call Dr. Phil Nyden who will be teaching the course: pnyden@luc.edu or 312-915-7761.


Syllabus for Sociology 370: Equitable Community Development
Fall Semester 2004

Equitable Community Development will explore policies and strategies that produce a high quality of life and maximum opportunities for all residents of local communities, including low-income families. The course is part of a new Center for Urban Research and Learning international project funded by the U.S. Department of Education (FIPSE, the Fund for Innovation in Post-Secondary Education) and the European Commission. More information on the project is available on the project web site: http://www.luc.edu/curl/escd/.

The course will link university-community partnerships in four cities--Chicago, Washington DC, Liverpool (UK), and Seville (Spain). Students, faculty, and community leaders in each city will be working together to explore policies and organizing strategies--both established approaches and new, innovative approaches--that can produce more equitable community development strategies. There will be regular communication among students and faculty in all four cities. All students will be actively engaged in community-based policy projects in Chicago neighborhoods. The university partners in the four cities are Loyola University in Chicago, Georgetown University in Washington D.C., University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom, and University of Seville in Spain.

Our Chicago partners will be the Organization of the NorthEast and the Logan Square Neighborhood Association--organizations that have been active in the Rogers Park, Edgewater, Uptown, and Logan Square communities of Chicago. They have also been key organizers of the Balanced Development Campaign, which has successfully encouraged local government leaders to enact equitable development strategies in Chicago.

Students, faculty, and community leaders in each city will be exploring policies and organizing strategies—both established approaches and innovations. They will communicate among each other through the course website and blog. The hope is that cooperation within and among the cities will continue past the end of the semester. Based on our experience in this and subsequent semesters, we plan to produce a shared, international curriculum on equitable development by 2006. It will be in the form of a manual with course materials, case studies and other resources.

To print the MS Word Version of Syllabus click here.

Readings:

Readings should be completed before the day on which they are assigned. As noted, many of the readings are available on the web, others will be distributed in class. At this point there is no need to purchase a book, but we may add one or two in the course of the semester.

Course Schedule:

Aug 30 Overview of the course, the sustainable equitable development project, and issue of reinvestment without displacement & participatory action research

Sept 7 Investing in “communities of opportunity” or perpetuating the cycle of gentrification, displacement, and concentrated poverty

Linda Lutton, “There Goes the Neighborhood: Concern Grows as Gentrification Spreads Through Chicago,” The Neighborhood Works (July/August 1997), pp. 16-23.

Bruce Katz, “Neighborhoods of Choice and Connection: The Evolution of American Neighborhood Policy and What It Means for the United Kingdom,” Research Brief, The Brookings Institution, July 2004 [http://www.brookings.edu/metro/pubs/20040713_katz.htm].Paul A. Jargowsky, “Stunning Progress, Hidden Problems: The Dramatic Decline of Concentrated Poverty in the 1990s,” Research Brief, The Brookings Institution, May 2003 [http://www.brookings.edu/metro/publications/jargowskypoverty.htm].

Greenwood, Davydd J. and Morten Levin. 1998. Introduction to Action Research: Social Research for Social Change. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1998), Part 1 “What is Action Research?”

Sept 14 The Balanced Development Campaign and Community Visit to Uptown and Organization of the NorthEast (ONE)

Art Lyons, “The Crisis in Housing: Thinking the Unthinkable,” in Nyden et al., eds. (2004), Affordable Housing in the Chicago Region, (Chicago: Loyola University Center for Urban Research and Learning and the Institution for Metropolitan Affairs, Roosevelt University, 2003) A project funded by the Woods Fund of Chicago, pp. 4-32. [This report is available in pdf form on the CURL web site: http://www.luc.edu/curl/pubs. Click on “Affordable Housing in Chicago Region: Perspectives & Strategies ” on the publications page for the pdf file.

David Hamilton, “The Politics of Affordable Housing,” in Nyden et al., eds. (2004), Affordable Housing..., pp. 33-57

“Racial, Ethnic, and Economic Diversity: Pipe Dream Of the Politically Correct or Are There Working Models?” Part 1 in Philip Nyden, Anne Figert, Mark Shibley and Darryl Burrows, eds., Building Community: Social Science in Action. Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press, 1997, pp. 29-64.

Sept 21 Community Visit to Logan Square and the Logan Square Neighborhood Association (LSNA)

Kathleen Kane-Willis, “Closing the Gap: Financing Affordable Housing in the Chicago Area,” in Affordable Housing…, pp. 58-79.

James Rosenbaum, “Places Matter: Research Findings on Neighborhood Influences on Achievement and the Implications for Housing Relocation Programs…,” in Affordable Housing…, pp. 80-98.

Sept 28 Reinvestment without Displacement: International Perspectives

Tony Novak, “Living in the City: Poverty and Social Exclusion,” in Ronaldo Munck, ed., Reinventing the City: Liverpool in Comparative Perspective. Liverpool, UK: Liverpool University Press, 2003, pp. 177-190.

David Hall, Images of the City, in Munck, pp. 191-210.

Other readings TBA

Oct 5 Alternative Development Strategies and Effective Community Organizing Strategies

Joint Center for Environmental and Urban Problems, Florida Atlantic University/Florida International University, Development Without Displacement Community Handbook. Working Document prepared for the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. 2000 [pdf file is available at: http://www.catanese.org/projects/project.asp?ProjectID=82]

Oct 12 Mid-term break, no class

Oct 19 Strategies for Change: Affordable Housing, Living Wages, and Equitable Community Development

Readings TBA

Oct 26 Strategies for Change: Sustaining Racially and Ethnically Diverse Neighborhoods

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, “Racially and Ethnically Diverse Neighborhoods” Special issue of HUD’s policy journal, Cityscape, ed. by Nyden, Peterman, and Lukehart (vol 4, no. 2, 1998). Available electronically at: http://www.huduser.org/periodicals/cityscpe/vol4num2/current.html

Nov 2 Institutional Roles in Equitable Development: Local Government and Universities

VOTE BEFORE COMING TO CLASS!!

Clavel, P. & W. Wiewel, eds. 1991. Harold Washington and the Neighborhoods: Progressive City Government in Chicago, 1983-1987, selections.
Nov 2 Institutional Roles in Equitable Development
(cont.)
Arnold R. Hirsch, Making the second ghetto: Race and Housing in Chicago, 1940-1960. (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1983), selections.

Readings on Tax Increment Financing Districts TIFs, including a case study of the Rogers Park TIF

Nov 9 Strategies for Change: Business and Equitable, Sustainable Community Development

Readings TBA

Nov 18 Strategies for Change: Schools and Equitable, Sustainable Community Development

Research for Action (Eva Gold and Elaine Simon), Strong Neighborhoods, Strong Schools. Chicago: Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform, 2002. Downloadable file: http://www.crosscity.org/downloads/strong_neighbors_schools.pdf.

Nov 23 Guest Speaker from Liverpool (tentative)

Nov 30 Relationship between Regional, National and International Policy and Local Sustainable Equitable Development

Dreier, P. et. al. 1999. Place Matters: Metropolitics for the Twenty-First Century. Lawrence, KA: University Press of Kansas, selections.

Philip Nyden, Nathan Benefield, and Maureen Hellwig, “Who is Listening to Local Communities?: Connections between Chicago region Community-based organizations and Regional, Sate, and National Policy Initiatives.” Report to the Woods Fund of Chicago by the Regional Equity Initiative, Sept. 2004.

National Neighborhood Coalition and the Center for Urban Research and Learning, Neighborhood Voices: Getting it Together, Connecting Local Neighborhoods and National Advocates. Washington, DC: National Neighborhood Coalition, 2003.

Dec 7 Open Class Topic

Dec 14 Project Reports

Prerequisites:
The course is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. Prior experience in an urban-oriented course, a research methods course, or Internet management is highly desirable, but not required. Undergraduates who would like to work an additional day per week on the research team may register for an additional, linked independent study. Talk with Dr. Nyden if you are interested in an additional independent study.

Philosophy:
This course is a small, seminar format where the participants are expected to help shape the agenda for class sessions, and to make substantive contributions to discussions. Consequently, this course will begin with some basic structure, but it will evolve according to the needs and interests of students and community leaders, both here and abroad.

Our goal is not only to understand what has been done in the past, but also to generate new ideas and options for the future. This process, while exciting and engaging, necessarily entails some “bumps” and “dead-ends.” Participants who can deal realistically with frustration and confusion will be most likely to be successful in the course.

Procedures:
The purpose of this course is to produce knowledge for action in urban communities. Members of the course will do background reading and meet for class sessions at CURL, but they will also spend time working on two or three research teams with other students, community organization staff, CURL staff, and faculty. Some of this work will be done at CURL while other work will be done on-site with ONE or LSNA.

Formulating a research question in collaboration with these organizations will be a key early task for this course, in order to produce something useful and shared by the end of the semester. The course will include discussion of readings and experiences, guest speakers, community visits, presentations of research projects. We also plan to engage in discussions with partners (faculty, community leaders, and students) in our partner cities. In some cases we are hoping to have visits from faculty, and potentially community partners, from Liverpool, Seville, and Washington DC.

Although an initial set of assigned readings and schedule is provided, given the dynamic nature of the course, there will be additions and modifications as the semester progresses. Additional readings will be selected from the resource list on our website as the course progresses.

Requirements:
All members of the class are expected to:

- Attend all class sessions and do required reading, online and offline
- Read and contribute to readings posted on the project website
- Keep a log of activities and observations when you are working in the community
- As part of a research team, produce an interim report on the research project by mid-term and a final report by the end of the semester. The nature of this report will be discussed during the semester. It will reflect the needs and interests of our community partners as well as the academic requirements of the course. It will represent an equivalent amount of work (research and writing) to a 10-15-page term paper for undergraduates, or 20-25 for graduate students taking the course. It is possible, however, that the final product could take the form of something other than a term paper, e.g. community video, policy report to the community organization, or website providing an annotated list of sustainable development strategies and models.
- Fulfill one distinctive task for the benefit of the international collaboration.

Possibilities for the last requirement include but are not limited to the following:
- Transcribing/editing talks by guest speakers and posting on website
- Interviewing/documenting approach of ONE and LSNA and posting on website
- Assisting in management of the blog and attached resources/screen comments
- Acting as go-between for local community leaders/residents and web blog
- Acting as liaison between Chicago and one of the other three partner sites
- Organizing Spanish-language communication between residents of Seville and Latino residents in Logan Square/Uptown

Grading:

Knowledge acquired by students and success of the overall projects is directly related to the active involvement of everyone. Consequently, the course requirements organize worthwhile activities that contribute to the learning of each individual and to the group as a whole.

A course grade will be assigned based on the following:

Class and on-line discussion participation 30%
Short reaction/analysis papers 30%
Interim & final report 30%
Contribution to international collaboration 10%

Contact Information:

Professor: Dr. Philip Nyden Phone: 312- 915-7761
Office: LT 10th Floor email: pnyden@luc.edu
Office Hours: Generally I will be available before class on Tuesdays (12:30-2:30). However, because of my unpredictable meeting schedule there may be times when I will not be in the office, so please call ahead if you would like to meet with me. I also am available to set up appointments on most other days during the week, so either e-mail or call me to set up an appointment. If you do send an e-mail, make sure that you fill in the subject line; given the volume of junk mail that comes through the filters, e-mails with blank subject lines often get deleted.

Professor: Dr. Marilyn Krogh Phone: 773-508-3471
Office: Damen Hall 955C email: mkrogh@luc.edu

Powerpoint presentations

[* These presentations and full reports are available on-line at the Brookings Institution web site.]

Student Reports


  



 

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