Ideas Edition

     First, let’s focus on broadband and the once-in-a-generation federal investment to expand broadband access and equity in the infrastructure bill recently signed by the President. The publication Governing on November 17 features an article on Broadband and the States: The Critical Role of Partnerships   by Kathryn de Wit, The Pew Charitable Trusts. The next move in broadband expansion belongs to the states, which are required to submit five-year action plans to show how they will use the federal broadband funds to improve local economic development, education, health care and other vital needs. As Ms. de Wit observes, “This is an important requirement because it will force states to focus on broadband as a means to a greater end, not as the end itself: Laying fiber in the ground is only a first step in creating a truly connected nation.” The Richmond Federal Reserve found that “the long-run benefits of broadband access could grow exponentially, given the potential for innovation and productivity gains it provides”. A Purdue University study estimated that for every dollar invested in broadband deployment and adoption in Indiana, nearly four dollars went back into the state’s economy.

     But Ms. de Wit warns that these outcomes aren’t guaranteed. One in three workers still lack foundational digital skills. Nearly 90 percent of executives and managers report that they see employee skills gaps now or expect them in the next five years, but only about one-third of their organizations have active efforts to retrain employees.

     One thing is certain—the shifts won’t happen without partnerships. Now is the time for our network to support an equitable recovery by joining with businesses, research organizations, community partners and others to participate in state planning efforts, helping to shape state strategies and plans to meet the needs of the state and communities in ways such as sharing information on skills gaps in the workforce, identifying evidence-based solutions for increasing telehealth usage and elevating how living on a fixed income may influence aging Americans’ ability to access digital resources.

     Ms. de Wit concludes that “Given the potentiality transformative nature of the infrastructure law’s funds and given what connectivity would mean for households, economies, and organizations, it is more important than ever to find ways to help communities maximize the economic, educational, health and social benefits of high-speed Internet. Achieving that aim requires business leaders, technologists, health-care professionals, educators and policy experts (and community action) to work together, sharing research and ideas to identify the complex challenges that lie ahead.”

     Second, another earlier article in Governing by George Abbott and Alexa Bush on November 4 asked the question, Want Equity and Prosperity? Invest in Urban Public Spaces  . Abbott and Bush conclude that the public spaces in our communities—the parks, streetscapes, community centers, trails and libraries that we share are a critical policy tool for achieving greater equity and prosperity. Their article focus on two communities—the Fitzgerald neighborhood in Detroit and near downtown Memphis but the problems they identify affect many communities—segregation and concentrated poverty, chronic disinvestment in low-income and Black-majority communities, health disparities, growing distrust in institutions and in other people, and entrenched systemic racism that is reflected in the built environment.
 

     A growing body of research shows the economic and social benefits of a robust, nature-rich and welcoming public realm. These include improved physical and mental health, better brain function in children, more self-reported happiness, cleaner air, more opportunities to build wealth, less gun violence and even increased trust between people and in local government.

     In Memphis, a collaboration of nonprofits and public agencies is using public-space design and programming to transform previously underused parks and a public library beside the Mississippi River into a series of reimagined, vibrant community spaces called the Fourth Bluff. An important first step in the project was to remedy the harm felt by many people from two of the parks which were named in honor of the Confederacy and hosted Confederate monuments. Simply removing the names and monuments was not enough. Creating spaces that are welcoming to people from all backgrounds required intentional design, thoughtful staffing and creative programming and activities over a period of several years. Parks were transformed from bare lawn into vibrant, verdant oases of nature, with new trees, native plants and meadows. The parks were animated with art and performances by Black artists. Members of the community were hired into newly-created “park ranger” positions, charged with maintaining the spaces and welcoming every visitor. Today, a diversity of programming draws in people from different backgrounds, people who might otherwise never meet.

     In Detroit, neighborhood revitalization goes beyond singular, traditional investments in housing and commercial redevelopment. As part of the city’s work to repair the decades-long legacy of redlining, economic development efforts prioritize the public realm. In the Fitzgerald neighborhood  , this included the construction of a new city park and greenway along with the transformation of a commercial-corridor streetscape. To increase the local impact of the project, local residents were hired to prepare the site for the park and transform vacant lots into flowering meadows. The program’s success has led to its scaling into a multi-neighborhood, transitional-workforce program that will employ up to 100 people. The city is leveraging place-based improvements into investments in human capital, contributing to neighborhood stabilization.

     They are members of a cross-sector working group that wrote Place Driving Equity, a new publication detailing the research, public policies and actions that can deliver shared prosperity through investments in public space.

     Third, in January 2021, the Urban Institute, Child Trends and the Foundation for Child Development sponsored a virtual convening for the Foundation’s Young Scholars Program  . The YSP supports early-career researchers with grant funding to conduct projects relevant to early childhood education policy and practice. The key issues discussed at the convening were advancing financial equity for the early childhood education workforce and promoting early childhood workforce well-being.

     The key issues regarding advancing financial equity were: the workforce suffers from structural wage and opportunity gaps. The workforce consists primarily of women (95 percent), with women of color constituting 40 percent. Compared with other US occupations, this workforce is poorly compensated, with women of color disproportionately experiencing structural opportunity and wage gaps. The pandemic had a disproportionate impact on early childhood educators, especially those who continued working while other businesses shut down or shifted to virtual learning. A need for equitable pay exists, especially in the context of requiring higher credentials. Recent policy efforts are designed to encourage early childhood educators to earn higher credentials and employers to offer equitable and commensurate pay. Enacting these policies will require political will.

     Key considerations in promoting workforce well-being were: Studies of the workforce conducted before the pandemic showed that a portion of the workforce faces anxiety—workforce well-being worsened during the pandemic as educators faced economic stress that increased overall stress. Supports for the workforce existed during the pandemic and should continue after the pandemic. A number of promising approaches were recommended by convening participants.

Jim Schuyler VACAP