ERIC ED563827: Changing the Odds: The Race for Results in Atlanta

2015·1.1 MB·English

by  ERIC

CHANGING THE ODDS
the race for results in atlanta
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THE ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION The Annie E. Casey Foundation is a private
philanthropy that creates a brighter future for
the nation’s children by developing solutions
to strengthen families, build paths to economic
opportunity and transform struggling
communities into safer and healthier places to
live, work and grow. For more information, visit
www.aecf.org.
© 2015 The Annie E. Casey Foundation
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CONTENTS
2 Introduction
4 Community
6 Education
10 Economic Opportunity
14 Recommendations
18 Conclusion
18 Acknowledgments
19 Endnotes
African Americans represent at least
INTRODUCTION 80 percent of the population in 12 of
the 17 NPUs located along or below
I-20, while more than 60 percent of
the six northern NPUs’ populations
are white.7 NPUs in northern Atlanta
Atlanta is the birthplace of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and the have the highest enrollment in early
education programs and the highest-
American civil rights movement and home to some of the country’s
performing elementary schools, most
most prestigious historically black colleges and universities. of the city’s high-income workers
and better access to the growing job
market on the north side and in the
northern suburbs. By contrast, most of
The city is a magnet for professionals, to struggle to make ends meet and Atlanta’s low-income workers live in the
particularly people of color. It also has reside in neighborhoods contending southern NPUs, and few have access to
a rich legacy of black and white civic and with blight, limited resources and few reliable transportation that would allow
community leaders working tirelessly opportunities to realize their dreams for them to tap into regional employment
to stand apart from other southern a better life. opportunities that lie beyond the reach
cities when it came to the racial tension of public transit.8
and unrest that marked the 1960s, Race has undeniably shaped the city’s
positioning Atlanta as the “city too busy landscape, giving rise to two very Even as metro Atlanta’s economy thrives,
to hate.”1 Then-Mayor Ivan Allen was different Atlantas that underscore the city recently ranked first for income
the only major southern leader to the fact that the place where children inequality,9 and one in four of its residents
publicly endorse national civil rights grow up affects their opportunities lives in poverty.10 In addition, low- and
legislation, and Maynard Jackson, the in life. This report examines the city moderate-income workers and families
city’s first African-American mayor, through its 25 neighborhood planning have limited housing options.11 To advance
established groundbreaking affirmative units (NPUs)4—the resident advisory the local economy and ensure all children
action policies and kept Atlanta’s councils that make zoning and other have the chance to participate in and
international airport on the south side, planning recommendations—to contribute to it, Atlanta must address the
bringing thousands of jobs to that part explore how race and community of barriers to opportunity that face many in
of the city to balance business expansion residence erect persistent barriers that the city and region.
to the north. keep kids from reaching their potential.
They also keep the city from fully Examining Barriers to
Today, metro Atlanta serves as the harnessing its economic power: Metro Opportunity at the Local Level
headquarters for nearly 30 Fortune Atlanta’s economy stands to gain an For more than a decade, the Annie E.
1000 companies that collectively additional $78.6 million annually by Casey Foundation has worked with
generated almost $360 billion in promoting racial equity, according to a broad range of partners to increase
revenues in 2014 alone, contributing a recent study.5 educational and economic opportunities
to a booming economy that is among for children and families in several
the largest in the country.2 But while The importance of community is southwest Atlanta neighborhoods,with
the city has much to celebrate, its evident throughout metro Atlanta, the goal of ensuring all kids, regardless
proud history and thriving economy but especially in the city. While the city of race, ethnicity or community of
mask deep and enduring challenges has become somewhat more diverse in residence, have the chance to realize
that make it one of the most difficult recent years, it remains divided, literally their full potential.12 Yet race remains
places in the nation for children in low- and figuratively. The east-west Interstate a major predictor of a child’s trajectory
income families to climb out of poverty.3 20 separates wealthier, majority-white in life — a reality reinforced by nearly
This is even truer for the city’s children communities in the north from poorer, every measure of child and family well-
of color, whose families are more likely majority-black ones in the south.6 being highlighted in this report.
2
In 2014, the Casey Foundation released too many kids and families in the region
Race for Results: Building a Path to have encountered for decades.14
PLACING ATLANTA IN A REGIONAL CONTEXT
Opportunity for All Children, which
revealed that children of color across the This report focuses on three key areas While this report focuses on the city of Atlanta,
nation have a steeper hill to climb when that support or thwart children’s healthy we cannot ignore the impact the surrounding
it comes to meeting key milestones on growth and development: (1) the region has on city residents. Mirroring national
the path to a successful adulthood.13 We community where they grow up; (2) their
trends, the metropolitan region15 has become
now explore how this steeper climb plays school experiences; and (3) their family’s
increasingly diverse in recent decades. The 1980s
out on the local level, in Atlanta, where access to economic opportunities. It
brought refugees from Asia, Afghanistan, Ethiopia
the Foundation has made a long-term seeks to identify how public policies and
and Europe, and Atlanta’s booming economy
commitment to improving the lives practices in each area maintain barriers
has attracted large numbers of immigrants from
of children and families, as well as the to success for children and families,
Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East
places where they live. We hope to build particularly those of color, and offers
and Africa. In the past decade alone, the region’s
on the longtime work of others who recommendations for addressing these
population has grown by 1 million, making it
have sought to remove the obstacles that obstacles so that all children can thrive.
one of the fastest-growing in the United States.
Increases in populations of color are responsible
A City Divided
for 90 percent of that growth.16
In Atlanta, the east-west I-20 separates wealthier, majority-white communities in the north from
poorer, m ajo rity-black communities in the south. African Americans represent at least 80 percent
of the population in 12 of the 17 NPUs located along or below I-20. Yet soaring racial and ethnic diversity have not

75 translated into racially and ethnically diverse
neighborhoods. Most white residents live in the
region’s outer counties and the city’s north side,
A while black residents are mostly clustered to the
south. Asians and Pacific Islanders primarily live
B
in the northeastern counties, with some pockets
85
285 C in other areas, while Latinos most heavily
reside in the metro area’s northeastern and
D northwestern counties.17
F
G
E DOWNTOWN ATLANTA
In contrast to this multicultural panorama, the
20 J K L N city landscape is largely black and white: The
H M O two groups represent nearly 90 percent of the
I T 20 population.18 Given this context and the limited
Q V W availability of data for smaller racial and ethnic
S groups, this report primarily focuses on the city’s
R X 85 Y black and white residents, including statistics
for other groups where possible.
P
285
Z
 Majority White  Majority Black
SOURCE: Neighborhood Nexus analysis of 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data.
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COMMUNITY
Children’s success is strongly tied to their family’s stability
and well-being, which, in turn, is affected by where they
live.19 Children living in high-poverty areas — like many of the
neighborhoods on Atlanta’s south side — frequently lack access
to critical resources such as high-performing schools, quality
medical care and safe outdoor spaces.
Regardless of income, families living throughout the last century set the stage
in high-poverty communities are more for many of the challenges that pervade
likely to have limited healthy food a number of Atlanta neighborhoods
CHILDREN WHO LIVE IN LOW-POVERTY AREAS options and pay more for housing than today. During the wave of urban renewal
(POVERTY < 20%)
those living in more affluent areas.20 programs in the mid-20th century, the
These challenges often trap children city used federal funds to demolish
44%
in a cycle of poverty. homes in lower-income communities
to allow for new interstate highways,
ATLANTA
In Atlanta, the relationship between place a civic center and what is now Turner
20%
and race is glaring. Ninety-four percent Field. This weakened the fabric of the
of white children live in low-poverty majority-black neighborhoods that bore
AFRICAN AMERICAN communities, compared to 20 percent of the brunt of the demolition and left the
71% black children and 57 percent of Latino tens of thousands who were displaced —
children. The neighborhood planning also mostly black — with few housing
ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER units underscore this reality, with most options because of segregation policies
57% high-poverty areas concentrated in the and delays in housing development in
predominantly black NPUs located along those communities.22
LATINO or below I-20. Only five of the 17 NPUs
94% along or south of I-20 are considered Demolition continued in the 1990s
low-poverty areas, where the poverty rate and 2000s, as the city used the federal
WHITE is less than 20 percent, and in four of the HOPE VI program to redevelop public
south-side NPUs, more than 40 percent housing complexes. Although the mixed-
SOURCE: Neighborhood Nexus analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s
2008-2012 American Community Survey. of residents live below the federal poverty income developments that replaced
line, or $23,624 for a family of four.21 them brought more economic diversity
to some high-poverty neighborhoods,
Factors Shaping Atlanta’s they had fewer affordable units for
Community Landscape lower-income families. Even with these
A history of segregation and recent new developments, poverty remains
redevelopment. Racially segregated public concentrated on the city’s south side,
housing, zoning ordinances and other and most relocated families ended up in
public- and private-sector practices low-income neighborhoods contending
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with challenges such as high foreclosure
COMMUNITY rates and violent crime.23
Vacant Housing in Atlanta by Neighborhood Planning Unit, 2010
The cost of housing and declining home
values. Many south and central Atlanta

families spend more than 30 percent of

their income on housing, placing them
75
in financially precarious positions as
they struggle to cover other expenses
such as food, clothing and child care.24
Most of the households in 11 of the A
17 NPUs along or south of I-20
B
find themselves in this predicament.
In NPU-L, just west of downtown, 85
285 C
this is true for more than 70 percent
of households. In the six northern
majority-white NPUs, by contrast, less D
F
than 40 percent of households spend G
E DOWNTOWN ATLANTA
more than 30 percent of their income
on housing.25
20 J K L N
H M
The dramatic drop in metro Atlanta O
home values caused by the Great I T 20
Recession has further undermined
Q V W
family and neighborhood stability
S
— particularly for African-American
85 Y
residents, who saw a disproportionate R X
decrease in the value of their homes.26
P
Since the recession, home values in 285
northern Atlanta neighborhoods have
Z
largely rebounded, matching national
trends. The same has not held true on
the city’s south side, where many home
mortgages exceed property values.
These losses create a domino effect, as
they turn what is normally considered
an asset — homeownership — into
a liability.27  0 to < 2%  2 to < 5%  5 to < 11%  11 to < 18%  18 to < 32%
With a majority of households in south SOURCE: Neighborhood Nexus analysis of 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data.
Atlanta struggling to make ends meet
and neighborhood stability weakened
by the housing market crash, the ability
of black families to build assets and
wealth has been largely compromised.
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EDUCATION
The equation is simple: The more education you have, the more
you earn — and the more likely you are to be able to get and
keep a job that pays enough to support a family.28 In Atlanta,
however, there is a notable difference in the quality of educational
opportunities to which children have access, starting from their
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS GRADUATING ON TIME: earliest years and continuing through high school.
ATLANTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 2014
59%
Early childhood education. Research limit the available slots for children in
41A+59
underscores the importance of the early communities where demand is high
years in a child’s life in laying a solid and affordable alternatives are few or
foundation for success in school and nonexistent. In addition, almost half
beyond: Children in high-quality early of the city’s Georgia Pre-K programs
education programs are more likely do not accept the public subsidies
ATLANTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS to graduate from high school.29 Such that help low-income families pay for
57% 94% programs have an even greater influence child care for younger children not yet
on the growth and development of eligible for Georgia Pre-K, which could
43A+57 6A+94
children in low-income families.30 force them to pursue other avenues for
their care or thwart their employment
Yet preschool enrollment is uneven opportunities.32 A lack of access to
across Atlanta, with lower enrollment quality child care might also contribute
on the south side, where more black to these differences; one study found
AFRICAN AMERICAN ASIAN AND
children and kids in low-income that two-thirds of Georgia’s infants and
PACIFIC ISLANDER
families live.31 For example, more toddlers are in child care centers of
53% 84%
than 80 percent of 3- and 4-year-old “unacceptably low quality.”33
47A+53 16A+84 children in majority-white NPU-A
and NPU-N are enrolled in an early Reading proficiency. An early mastery of
education program, compared with reading is critical to a child’s academic
only about 25 percent of children in success, providing a solid base for
majority-black NPU-J. learning more complex concepts in
higher grades.34 Fourth-graders who
LATINO WHITE
The reasons for these differences in struggle with reading are four times
SOURCE: Atlanta Public Schools analysis of 2013–2014 school year data. enrollment are unclear and require more likely to drop out.35
additional research. The statewide
Georgia Pre-K program covers the Among Atlanta Public Schools36
cost of prekindergarten for 4-year-olds students, the percentage of white third-
in public schools and private child graders (88 percent) who exceeded the
care centers, but its open-enrollment state’s reading standards — a stronger
process and voluntary nature can measure of proficiency — was more
6
Percentage of Children in Nursery School or Preschool, 2009-2013
EDUCATION

75  25 to < 37%
 37 to < 52%
A
B  52 to < 58%
85
285 C
 58 to < 71%
D
F
G  71 to < 90%
E DOWNTOWN ATLANTA
20 J K L N
H M
O
I T 20
Q V W
S
85 Y
R X
P
285
Z
SOURCE: Neighborhood Nexus analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2009-2013
American Community Survey.
THIRD-GRADERS WHO MEET OR EXCEED STANDARDS FOR READING, 2014 EIGHTH-GRADERS WHO MEET OR EXCEED STANDARDS FOR MATH, 2014
50%  Meets     53%  Meets    
ATLANTA PUBLIC ATLANTA PUBLIC
SCHOOLS 39% SCHOOLS 24%
 Exceeds  Exceeds
61% 57%
AFRICAN AMERICAN 24% AFRICAN AMERICAN 16%
15% 18%
ASIAN 79% ASIAN 82%
59% 53%
LATINO LATINO
35% 28%
12% 26%
WHITE 88% WHITE 71%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
SOURCE: Governor’s Office of Student Achievement, K-12 Public Schools Report Card data for the 2013-2014 school year.
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than three times that of their black peers black children in Atlanta and elsewhere,
(24 percent) and more than twice that however, were far from equal. Atlanta
of Latinos (35 percent). By contrast, did not open a high school for black
79 percent of Asian students exceeded students until 1924, more than 50 years
the standards. after opening high schools for white
students and after many other southern
High school graduation. Far too few cities had already done so.42 Per-pupil
Improving the graduation children in Atlanta are graduating from expenditures in mid-century were nearly
high school, a requirement even for most three times higher for white students.43
rate for students of color
low-wage jobs.37 Although the graduation These funding differences increased in
and the city as a whole rate for Atlanta Public Schools has risen the 1960s, as the school board refused
to almost 60 percent in recent years, it to reallocate resources to majority-black
would give a significant
still lags behind the state and nearly all schools to account for the demographic
large U.S. school districts.38 shifts caused by more than 60,000 white
boost to the local economy
students leaving the district.44 This
in the form of more jobs, A closer examination of this bleak uneven investment had a measurable
picture, however, reveals an even starker effect on student learning. A 1968 study,
income and tax revenues.
reality for students of color. The 2014 for example, found that black fourth-
graduation rate for white and Asian graders lagged one year behind their
students was 84 percent and 94 percent, white peers, while black eighth-graders
respectively, compared with 57 percent lagged four years behind.45
for black students and 53 percent for
Latinos.39 Black and Latino students Geography. Student achievement patterns
are more than three times more likely correspond with the city’s north-south
to drop out of school.40 Comparisons divide. Eleven of the district’s 14 top-
between Atlanta students and their peers performing elementary schools in third-
across the state further illuminate the grade reading are in northern Atlanta.
distinct barriers facing African-American The three others are charter schools that
children: While the school district’s draw students from across the city.46
white students graduate at a higher rate
than their counterparts across the state, Student attendance. To succeed in school,
its African-American students lag behind children must actually attend. Missing
their peers outside the city. just six days of school in a year for any
reason affects student achievement and
Beyond increasing opportunities for is a stronger predictor of not graduating
the students themselves, improving from high school than standardized test
the graduation rate for students of color scores.47 Housing instability and health
— and, therefore, the city as a whole conditions such as asthma, which lower-
— would give a significant boost to income families in particular tend to
the local economy in the form of more experience, often compromise student
jobs, income and tax revenues.41 attendance.48 Only half of the school
system’s black students missed fewer than
Factors Shaping Atlanta’s six days in the 2013-2014 school year,
Educational Landscape compared with nearly 65 percent of their
A history of discrimination. Segregated white peers. Black students also were
school systems were based on the legal nearly five times more likely to miss more
notion of “separate but equal.” The than 15 days during the school year, well
school systems established for white and over the district’s threshold for truancy.49
8