2000115-Strengthening-Communities-with-Neighborhood-Data

226 Strengthening Communities with Neighborhood Data
infrastructure investments to spur regional economic activity. 8 From
2010 to 2014, the Department of Housing and Urban Development
awarded over $165 million to 74 regional grantees. The program defined
six livability principles: (1) provide more transportation choices; (2) promote
equitable, affordable housing; (3) enhance economic competitiveness;
(4) support existing communities; (5) coordinate policies and
leverage investment; and (6) value communities and neighborhoods
(US Department of Housing and Urban Development 2012).
The Sustainable Communities Regional Planning program chose proposals
that demonstrated the capacity to use data to set and monitor progress
toward performance goals and engage stakeholders and residents in
meaningful decisionmaking roles. The program specified a common set
of performance measures called flagship sustainable indicators. These
included overall indicators describing regional populations, but also two
measures of equitable development summarizing residents’ access to
supermarkets and open space within a given distance (US Department of
Housing and Urban Development et al. 2012). The program also provided
technical assistance to increase the capacity of grantees to use mapping and
analysis to guide and track the implementation of their plans. Although the
grant program ended in 2014, its fostering of diverse regional partnerships
and inclusion of equity as a key component of regional economic progress
will leave a legacy in the grantee communities.
Action coalitions focus on many issues beyond housing and transportation.
A final example is the Campaign for Grade Level Reading,
a collaborative effort by foundations, nonprofit partners, states, and
communities “to ensure that more children in low-income families
succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career, and active
citizenship.” 9 The campaign was launched with the release of a report
sponsored by the Annie E. Casey Foundation that explained that gradelevel
reading by the end of third grade is a key predictor of academic
success (Fiester and Smith 2010). A 2013 research update reviewed evidence
showing how living in a high-poverty neighborhood negatively
affects school performance. In the results of one study, a child who lives
in a high-poverty neighborhood was less likely to graduate from high
school, even if he or she was on track on reading tests in third grade
(Fiester 2013). Although focused on education outcomes, the coalition
recognizes the need for a comprehensive understanding of the child’s
situation. The Campaign for Grade Level Reading website includes
background on how children’s health affects school performance and