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PADM 7345 --- Community Change and Development
Spring 2016
Professor Michael Craw
Office: 641 Ross Hall
Office hours: W & Th 4:00-6:00 p.m.
Office phone:(501) 569-3402
Cell phone: (517) 410-4175
Class time: W 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Class room: 321 Ross Hall
E-mail:
Course objectives
As a field of study, community development engages a broad range of questions. The term “community” implies that this field embraces local development in both rural and urban areas. And the term “development” implies the study of methods for economic, social, cultural and political improvement. The term “community development” has also been employed to study units as large as counties and metropolitan regions and as small as a city block.
As a way to narrow the scope of inquiry, this course will focus primarily on processes and methods for change and development in neighborhoods: socially-defined and recognized (though generally not politically-recognized) subdivisions of cities and counties. The neighborhood in which one lives affects one’s quality of life in countless ways, from the level of safety on experiences to the quality of education and other public services one’s family receives, to the friendships one develops. In this course, we take the view that we can understand the social and economic processes that affect neighborhood life and that we can use collective action and public policy to alter neighborhoods and improve quality of life. By the end of this course, students will have demonstrated their ability to:
--- Critically evaluate arguments about processes of neighborhood change such as segregation, blight and gentrification
--- Measure and evaluate outcomes at the neighborhood level
--- Evaluate the effects of public policy on neighborhood development
--- Organize collective action for neighborhood change
--- Develop strategies for neighborhood revitalization
Plan for the course
Meeting these goals requires first that we develop methods for analyzing the process of neighborhood change. This is an area of much research for both academics and community development professionals. We will begin by analyzing a central feature of American urban development: racial and income segregation. Economic advantage and disadvantage tend to cluster in neighborhoods, resulting in significant disparities across neighborhoods within cities. Segregation of this nature is a result of social and economic processes of neighborhood change and tie together with changes in physical environment (e.g. blight) and economic change (e.g. gentrification). At the same time, not all neighborhoods become segregated places: many remain diverse, racially and economically. We can gain valuable insights into why such differences exist across neighborhoods by considering the work of Jane Jacobs and her celebrated book on urban development, The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Jacob’s work has resulted in much subsequent research on neighborhood change and stability, some of the best of which is found in Robert Sampson’s The Great American City. We can use theories of neighborhood change and stability to gain clues for how to improve quality of life in disadvantaged neighborhoods.
Next, we will learn how neighborhoods become organized as places where collective action might occur. Neighborhoods differ significantly in terms of their capacity for collective action: some neighborhoods are well-organized and proactive in addressing neighborhood problems, while others are largely unorganized with little collective action. These differences can be explained with reference to Olson’s collective action dilemma, described in his book The Logic of Collective Action. An implication of Olson’s work is that trust, based on reciprocity and frequent interaction between neighbors, can reduce or solve collective action dilemmas, resulting in more effective collaboration. Robert Putnam’s work on social capital in his well-known book, Bowling Alone, describes how this can happen. Drawing on theories of collective action and social capital, we explore how outside actors (e.g. real estate developers and local governments) and neighbors create and use organizations to carry out neighborhood change.
After this study of how neighborhoods can organize for change, we wrap up the course by considering strategies used by local governments and community development organizations to create change. We first consider how local governments use land-use regulation to create change, taking an historical view provided by Sonia Hirt in her recent book, Zoned in the USA. We then consider strategies suggested by professionals in community development, both in Little Rock and across the nation. This section of the course provides practical tools that a community development agency or nonprofit might employ to improve quality of life in a disadvantaged neighborhood without displacing its native residents.
Communications
I encourage and expect contact from you over the semester. The easiest way to reach me is by e-mail (). You may also reach me at my cell number above during reasonable hours (between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m.). Or you may see me during my office hours or by making an appointment to see me. I frequently am at my office beyond my posted office hours, so please feel free to come in at other times when my office door is open.
I frequently use UALR e-mail and the course Blackboard system to conduct course business. If you do not use Blackboard and UALR’s e-mail, please be sure to forward messages from those accounts to the e-mail account that you use. I will also place course assignments, handouts and PowerPoint slides on the course Blackboard site whenever possible (usually within 24 hours after class).
Course materials
You are required to have five books for this course:
Hirt, Sonia. 2015. Zoned in the USA: The Origins and Implications of American Land-Use Regulation. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
Jacobs, Jane. 1961. The Death and Life of Great American Cities. New York: Penguin Books.
Olson, Mancur. 1965. The Logic of Collective Action. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Putnam, Robert. 2000. Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Touchstone Books.
Sampson, Robert. 2012. Great American City: Chicago and the Enduring Neighborhood Effect. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
All other readings are available on our course Blackboard site.
Course requirements and grading
To pass the course, students must satisfactorily complete all the following requirements:
Class participation:20%
First analytic essay:20%
Literature review:30%
Second analytic essay:30%
Provided that all work for the course is completed, your grade is determined by the weighted average of your scores on each of these four requirements as follows:
A:90% and above
B:80-89%
C:70-79%
D:60-69%
F:60% or below
Attendance: I tolerate 2 absences without penalty; every absence after the second lowers your course grade by 10 percentage points (one letter grade).
Class participation: One of the primary objectives of this class is to develop your ability to critically analyze policy issues. During class sessions, we will engage in activities such as discussion and group work that will call on you to apply new ideas from the reading to policy problems. Thus, it is important for you to come to class prepared to participate by having studied the assigned reading and completed the homework. Your class participation grade will reflect the following factors:
Collegiality: Showing respect for your peers by being in class on time, staying through the entire class, cell phones off, and respecting the views of others in class discussion.
Preparation: Completing reading before class, coming to class prepared with assignments and reading materials, active participation in discussion and small group work.
Engagement out of class: Class sessions are not the only opportunity to discuss course ideas with me. I want to know if you are having trouble with the material and what you like and don’t like about the course. You may reach me by e-mail, see me during office hours, make a lunch appointment with me, or drop by anytime my office door is open (I frequently work at my office beyond my posted office hours).
Annotated bibliography: As part of the literature review assignment, you will complete an annotated bibliography. This assignment will not be graded, but satisfactory completion is required as part of course participation.
Homework: Ideas from reading are learned much better if they are applied right away. Hence, you will receive twelve assignments over the semester that apply or extend ideas from the reading. These assignments will also often serve as a starting point for class discussion.
I will determine your homework based on your effort using a check system (check for a response showing thoughtful response to the question based on the reading, 0 otherwise). You must be in class to receive credit for a homework or lab assignment. Your homework grade counts as half your participation grade and is computed as the number of checks you received multiplied by 10% (i.e. 10 checks =100%, 9 checks =90% and so on). Assignments completed beyond the required 10 will earn extra credit.
Analytic essays: Over the course of the semester, you will complete two take-home essays. In these essays, you will apply the analytical tools and ideas that you learned over the course to explain or evaluate some issue in public policy. You will have one week to prepare your response to each question. Your response to the first essay question should be at least 1500 words (5 pages, double spaced). You will receive this question by Saturday, February 13, and your response will be due on Saturday, February 20 at 11:00 p.m. Your response to the second essay question will be at least 2500 words long (8 pages double-spaced). You will receive this question on Wednesday, April 27, and your response will be due on Wednesday, May4 at 11:00 p.m.
Literature review:Community development requires that one be able to analyze, make connections between, and draw conclusions from the work of other professionals. You will demonstrate your skill at this by completing a literature review of at least 4500 words (15 pages double-spaced) that addresses a research question in the field of community development. Your review must use a minimum of five scholarly sources, but it should not merely summarize these sources. Rather, it must analyze by comparing and contrasting approaches to the topic and drawing conclusions about a thesis or research question posed by the readings. Your review may be either argumentative (such as by arguing for adoption or rejection of a particular urban management theory, approach or method) or it may be analytical (such as by evaluating the causes or consequences of an urban management theory, approach or method). A paragraph explaining your research question or thesis and an annotated bibliography will be due on Saturday, March 12. The completed literature review will be due on Wednesday, April 20 at the in-class mini-conference. You should come prepared that day to explain your research problem and discuss what you found in the literature with your peers.
Submitting assignments
The course Blackboard page includes a folder in which homework, essay and problem definition paper assignments are stored. You may upload your completed assignments here and/or by email to me. I recommend both uploading your assignment to Blackboard AND emailing it to me () to ensure I receive it. It is your responsibility to assure that I have received your work on time. You are also welcome to submit assignments to me in hard copy. These should be delivered to me at my office or to my mailbox on the 6th floor of Ross Hall.
In the interest of fairness, late take-home essay and policy analysis papers will receive a penalty of 10 percentage points (one letter grade) for each day late. Homework assignments must be submitted before class time to receive credit.
Academic integrity
Cheating, plagiarism, duplication of work from other courses, and other violations of academic integrity standards will not be tolerated. Any student turning in work that is in violation of UALR academic integrity standards will automatically receive a grade of zero in the course and the matter will be referred to the MPA program coordinator. An overview of academic integrity standards and UALR’s academic integrity policy are at:
Accessibility
Your success in this class is important to me, and it is the policy and practice of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock to create inclusive learning environments consistent with federal and state law. If you have a documented disability (or need to have a disability documented), and need an accommodation, please contact me privately as soon as possible, so that we can discuss with the Disability Resource Center (DRC) how to meet your specific needs and the requirements of the course. The DRC offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process among you, your instructor(s) and the DRC. Thus, if you have a disability, please contact me and/or the DRC, at 501-569-3143 (V/TTY) or 501-683-7629 (VP). For more information, please visit the DRC website at ualr.edu/disability.
Course schedule
These topics and reading assignments may change throughout the course of the semester, depending on our speed and interests. Changes will be announced in class.
Date / Topic and reading assignedWednesday, January 13 / Course introduction
Film: "Why Can't We Live Together?"
Wednesday, January 20 / Nature and consequences of urban racial segregation
Sampson, chapters 1-2 and 5
Dreier, Mollenkopf and Swanstrom, "The Facts [and Costs] of Economic Segregation and Sprawl" (Blackboard)
Wednesday, January 27 / Process of neighborhood change
Schelling, "Sorting and Mixing: Race and Sex" (Blackboard)
Temkin and Rohe, "Neighborhood Change and Urban Policy" (Blackboard)
Wilson and Kelling, "Broken Windows: Policy and Public Safety" (Blackboard)
Sampson, chapter 6
Wednesday, February 3 / Neighborhood stability and urban planning
Jacobs, Death and Life of Great American Cities, chapters 1-15 and 21-22
Wednesday, February 10 / Creating neighborhood stability
Sampson, chapters 7-9
Maly, "Uptown Chicago" (Blackboard)
Taub, Taylor and Dunham, "Black and White Together" (Blackboard)
Wednesday, February 17 / The collective action dilemma
Olson, Logic of Collective Action
Saturday, February 20 / Analytic Essay 1 due at 11 p.m.
Wednesday, February 24 / Community privatization and enclaving
McCabe, "Homeowners Associations as Private Governments: What We Know, What We Don't Know, and Why It Matters" (Blackboard)
Baer and Feiock, "Private Governments in Urban Areas" (Blackboard)
Lang and Danielsen, "Gated Communities in America: Walling Out the World?" (Blackboard)
Warner, "Club Goods and Local Government: Questions for Planners" (Blackboard)
Wednesday, March 2 / Social capital
Putnam, Bowling Alone, chapters 1-10, 16-18, 24
Wednesday, March 9 / Grassroots community organizing: neighborhood associations and community development corporations
DeFilippis, "Community Control and Development: The Long View" (Blackboard)
University District Development Corporation Strategic Plan (Blackboard)
Guest speakers: Joe Busby, President, University District Neighborhood Association
Ron Copeland, Executive Director, University District Development Corporation
Saturday, March 12 / Annotated bibliography due at 11 p.m.
Wednesday, March 16 / Land use regulation
Hirt, Zoned in the USA
Wednesday, March 23 / Spring Break (no class)
Wednesday, March 30 / Planning and financing neighborhood redevelopment
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, "Breaking Ground: A Beginner's Guide for Nonprofit Developers" (Blackboard)
Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation, "Winona Drive Model Block" (Blackboard)
Business and Professional People in the Public Interest, "A Community Guide to Creating Affordable Housing" (Blackboard)
Benjamin et al, "Community Development Financial Institutions" (Blackboard)
Wednesday, April 6 / No class tonight. Students will schedule individual meetings with Prof. Craw
Wednesday, April 13 / City government and neighborhood development
Mayer and Keyes, "City Government's Role in the Community Development System" (Blackboard)
Stoker, Stone and Worgs, "Neighborhood Policy in Baltimore: The Postindustrial Turn" (Blackboard)
Guest speaker: Victor Turner, Assistant Director, Department of Housing and Neighborhood Programs, City of Little Rock
Wednesday, April 20 / Course Mini-conference
Wednesday, April 27 / Managing a community development organization
Enterprise Community Fund, "Building Sustainable Organizations for Affordable Housing and Community Development Impact" (Blackboard)
Glickman and Servon, "More than Bricks and Sticks" (Blackboard)
Saegert, "Building Civic Capacity in Urban Neighborhoods" (Blackboard)
Wray and Epstein, "Harnessing the Power of Community Collaborations" (Blackboard)
Wednesday, May 4 / Analytic Essay 2 due at 11 p.m.