Housing Is Education

CLPHA’s Housing Is Initiative recognizes the key role public housing authorities can play in a variety of educational efforts benefiting both low-income children and adults. Research has shown that housing stability has a significant impact on children’s school performance and long-term outcomes, such as graduation rates and post-secondary activities. Housing authorities are actively exploring how they can align with and add value to local approaches that aim to improve educational outcomes.

  • Housing authorities are providing additional support for residents’ education, from early childhood through adult learning opportunities. Some of these efforts are provided by the housing authority, such as through initiatives to improve attendance; others are joint efforts with partners, such as offering after-school programming on-site or digital literacy classes.
  • With support from the Housing Is initiative and other partners, housing authorities are using research to inform their work, as well as conducting program evaluation of their own initiatives to contribute to the field.
  • CLPHA works with a wide range of education partners at the national, regional, and state level to support the testing of innovative ideas and implementation of evidence-based best practices aligning education and housing.
  • Housing Is conducts advocacy efforts such as working with Senator Patty Murray’s (D-WA) office to write the AHEAD Act, a bill that would incentivize partnerships between different sectors to improve educational outcomes.
  • Some of our current areas of focus are: data sharing, out-of-school time; family engagement, two-generation initiatives, homelessness, early childhood, and connectivity.

Please contact CLPHA’s Director of Cross-Sector Initiatives Abra Lyons-Warren (abra@clpha.org) with inquiries about our housing and education work.

RESOURCE: McKinney-Vento Liaison Contacts  for CLPHA Member PHAs

This resource aims to foster strong partnerships between CLPHA member PHAs and McKinney-Vento liaisons to improve outcomes for students experiencing homelessness.

View Resource

Innovative public housing authorities (PHAs) are collaborating with college access partners and community colleges to increase postsecondary educational achievement for low-income residents and college students experiencing homelessness. Learn more in CLPHA's report "Eliminating Barriers to Postsecondary Success: Cross-Sector Collaborations to Improve Postsecondary Achievement for Students Served by Public Housing Authorities.

Housing Is Education News
2.5.20
CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman spoke to YouthToday about U.S. Senator Patty Murray’s (D-WA) Affordable Housing for Educational Achievement Demonstration (AHEAD) Act, which would encourage public housing authorities and school districts to work together to address child and family homelessness through a federal grant program.
2.5.20
CLPHA is pleased to announce part of our education webinar series is now open to the general public! Please join CLPHA and the director of FAIL STATE on Tuesday, February 11, 2:00-3:00 p.m. ET for a webinar and presentation on predatory for-profit institutions.
2.5.20
From Next City: At the beginning of the spring 2020 semester, the chancellor at the University of Washington Tacoma sent out an advisory to students: “If you or someone you know is dealing with housing issues that might interfere with the ability to succeed in school,” it said, “a new program could help.”

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