Thanks, Ashley!

This week we say goodbye to our UIP Intern, Ashley Blackwell.  She has done an amazing job for us, and she has an exciting and bright future ahead of her.

Ashley spent her first several months on research projects, and one of them focused on the links between stable, affordable housing and school performance.

A lot of people are looking at this issue, including writer Mary Ellen Podmolik in the Chicago Tribute.  In her article titled “Research links affordable housing to children’s test scores,” Ms. Podmolik notes that families supported by low paying jobs can be caught in traps whether they pay too little or too much for housing.

Affordable housing for these folks means living in a neighborhood with poor schools.  Unaffordable–paying more than 30% of take home for housing costs–means less available for food, clothing, and school supplies, including technology.

Is this really what we want for the children in our society?  Caught between a rock and a hard place?  We can do better.