Affordable Housing 2023 -2024
Issue:
· In 2023, Chatham County was on track for 9,710 evictions, with 4,549 filed as of June 20. While lack of payment is the main reason for evictions, they aren't always the cause.
· According to Housing Savannah, Chatham County has a housing deficit of 10,000 units, with 73% of those needed for low- to moderate-wage households. Homebuilders can't build single-family homes for less than $300,000, but the prevailing wage in the area means homes between $150,000 and $250,000 are needed.
· Deficit acute for low to moderate-income groups, including service industry workers, minimum-wage workers, teachers, nurses, and first responders.
· In 2023, 18.2% of Chatham County's population experienced severe housing problems, a 1.32% decline from 2014
· In January 2022, the average rent in Savannah was $1,453 per month, which was $213 more than the previous year. One food service worker said they were looking at places that cost $1,100 for a 300-square-foot studio, which was much higher than previous years.
· Dramatic population growth anticipated in the coastal regions is projected over the next decade, worsening the housing crisis.
Consequences:
· Unstable housing for low-income families
· Impact on school performance
· Health effects – chronic conditions; mental health
· Work productivity affected
Proposed Solutions: The city and County to champion affordable housing in the upcoming SPLOTS-8 referendum.
Outcome:
A commitment from both the City and County to champion affordable housing in the upcoming SPLOTS-8 referendum.
A commitment to meet with our affordable committee to generate a implementation plan for affordable housing in the SPLOTS-8 referendum.
We believe: Greater investments are needed to address the full scale of this problem.
Literacy Rates 2022-2023
Children in the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System Savannah (SCCPSS) demonstrate shockingly low levels of reading attainment[1]. According to the Spring 2024 Georgia Milestones End-of-Grade Assessment the percent of children in the SCCPSS who cannot read at grade level is as follows:
More than 70% of the students in the SCCPSS are minorities and poverty is widespread. The failure to inculcate reading skills severely handicaps the ability of children to succeed in school, graduate from high school, go on to post-secondary education, secure well-paying jobs, or have a successful work career. Low literacy also increases the likelihood of incarceration, suicide, depression, anxiety and low self-confidence.[2] In short, the failure of reading education is a fundamental injustice to children that exacerbates the challenges faced by the least advantaged.
Consequences:
· Worsens overall school performance.
· Reduced future professional opportunities.
· Long-term economic consequences.
JUST is a coalition of 23 Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith communities with deep roots in Savannah that advocates for justice on key issues. JUST chooses its priorities based on a months-long listening sessions in our communities to understand their experience of injustice and a democratic vote by congregational representatives as to priorities for justice. This led to the selection of reading education as a priority. Schooling for children is a basic human need and the failures in reading education are widely felt in Savannah and Chatham County. Reading education is a key issue for JUST, its member congregations, and the broader Savannah community. The insidious, pervasive and discriminatory impact of ineffective reading education makes it a core justice issue for our congregations.
JUST launched a campaign to address the reading crisis in the fall of 2022. Our purpose was to ensure that SCCPSS adopts a proven strategy for improving reading proficiency in school children. Specifically, the approach to reading education must be based on the Science of Reading. The Science of Reading refers to a vast body of research in education, cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, and neuroscience that explains how people learn to read.[1]The Science of Reading is not a specific program or product that can be purchased. Rather, it is a framework that provides key concepts derived from thousands of studies that educators can use to effectively teach reading. The five key components of the Science of Reading approach are phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency. The Science of Reading approach has been shown to be effective in many different contexts, including low resource and predominantly minority settings.
Proposed Solutions: Request that SCCPSS transition to an evidence-based Science of Reading literacy program and hire a superintendent who would champion it.
Outcomes:
SCCPSS leadership has undergone significant change in School Board membership and leadership, as well as a new School Superintendent who took the position in 2024. In part due to JUST advocacy, which included mass meetings with the 23 faith communities, the SCCPSS leadership has acknowledged poor student performance in reading and agreed to adopt the Science of Reading approach.
The School Board President, the School Board members and the School Superintendent have embraced the Science of Reading approach. The SCCPSS hired a superintendent to lead the change process. The school system launched the change process in the spring of 2024. JUST salutes the SCCPSS leaders for their willingness to embrace needed change.
Monitoring Phase:
While this is all encouraging, the reality is that implementation of the change process will be very challenging.
The focus of JUST advocacy must now shift from gaining agreement in principle to a policy change to ensuring the policy is implemented. This will mean careful attention to three areas: (1) Resource allocation; (2) Attainment of implementation plan benchmarks; and (3) Gains in student reading proficiency.
[1] Source: Spring 2024 Georgia Milestones End-of-Grade Assessment
[1] See National Center on Improving Literacy (2022) The Science of Reading: The Basics, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education; and, The Reading League, The Science of Reading: A defining movement https://www.thereadingleague.org/what-is-the-science-of-reading/;
[2] McArthur, G., Castles, A. Helping children with reading difficulties: some things we have learned so far. npj Science Learn 2, 7 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41539-017-0008-3
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