Pathways Magazine - Summer 2011

Table of Contents (Summer 2011 Issue)

Editors' Note by David Grusky and Christopher Wimer

Trends

• Economic Divisions and Political Polarization in Red and Blue America
  To hear pundits tell it, the well-to-do are increasingly likely to "vote blue." Andrew Gelman examines the data and finds it just ain't so.
  

Research in Brief

• New research developments by Lucas Manfield and Christopher Wimer
  New research on the emergence of exclusive neighborhoods for the rich; a surprising test of the supposed job-creating effects of small businesses; how natural disasters can reveal the effects of poverty on stress; and other cutting-edge research.

Leaders of the War on Poverty: Learning from State and Local Innovation

• All Together Now, One By One: Building Capacity for Urban Education Reform in Promise Neighborhoods
  James M. Quane and William Julius Wilson describe the promising results of the Harlem Children's Zone, why the current backlash against the Harlem Children’s Zone is unwarranted, and the future of such programs across the nation.
• Innovate, Research, Repeat: New York City’s Center for Economic Opportunity
  Veronica White and Kristin Morse detail the lessons learned from Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s innovative experiment in combating poverty in our nation’s biggest city.
• The "Wisconsin Idea" and Antipoverty Innovation
  Timothy M. Smeeding and Joanna Y. Marks take us on a tour of Wisconsin's past and present as a national leader in the science-driven battle against poverty.
• Taxing the Poor: How Some States Make Poverty Worse
  Katherine S. Newman and Rourke L. O'Brien show that many Southern states are making poverty worse because of their regressive tax policies.

Interventions

• Spotlight on... Family Independence Initiative
  Esra Burak talks with Maurice Lim, head of the Family Independence Initiative, about his radically different approach to helping families achieve self-sufficiency.
• Race to the Bottom
  The new Race to the Top initiative promises a results-driven model for improving education through testing and accountability. But Diane Ravitch argues that it's just a warmed-over version of No Child Left Behind and will likely harm our most disadvantaged students.