Building a Culture of Education Success Through Housing

In January 2014, NeighborWorks America (NeighborWorks) embarked on a partnership with the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) to conduct a national scan of strategies that utilize affordable housing as a platform for educational success. The scan focused on identifying promising programs that are (i) sponsored by a housing development, (ii) focused on educational outcomes and (iii) have demonstrated effectiveness. The project was guided by several principles about the potential for housing providers to make a contribution to educational outcomes, by offering:

• Space that could be used to create safe, constructive out-of-school environments;

• A target population of children who would benefit from additional academic supports; and

• Access to families that could facilitate parent engagement and two-generation approaches.