Policy Analysis

The New Chicago School (NCS) of Community and Economic Development  
The New Chicago School (NCS) of Community and Economic Development was developed to address the economic crisis due to loss of jobs or working in substandard jobs, shifting of federal government’s funding priorities, and to explore the opportunities that exist in our communities. A network of practitioners — working in universities, in community development, in consulting organizations, etc., have formed NCS as an open yet structured forum to serve as a foundation for intellectual and practical work. First strategic reflection at a hotel in Indiana was held in November 2000. Thirty-five leading practitioners from Chicago met for two days in a comparative discussion on the experience of The Woodlawn Organization, Shorebank, and the Center for Labor and Community Research. This exchange served as a springboard for winning a consensus among those present on the need for ongoing critical exchange, strategic discussion in the field, and a network of those with shared assumptions that could stimulate new and productive partnerships. This was the formal birth of the NCS.   
     
Fathers, Families and Healthy Communities Collaborative  
The EUC received funding from the Woods Fund of Chicago to launch the Fathers, Families and Healthy Communities Collaborative made up of local organizations and individuals with extensive experience in research, policy analysis, advocacy and managing programs directed at addressing the needs of African Americans and other low-income individuals, families and the communities they live in. The group’s primary goal is to identify and help facilitate the implementation of policies and programs that provide adequate economic and social benefits to African Americans and other low- and moderate-income groups, especially black males who are experiencing the most economic distress of all major racial groups, both nationally and in the Chicago area, with respect to poverty, unemployment, family incomes, wealth accumulation, business development, property ownership, and are experiencing the highest rate of incarceration. Current policies and strategies are insufficient to address the problems.

In 2005, the Egan Center staff edited a volume of case studies from five cities: Austin, Cleveland, Rochester, New York, Savannah, and Seattle that illustrated best practices in workforce and economic development. The Center is using a grant from The Annie E. Casey Foundation to explore the ways in which these best practices can be utilized in Chicago through the Fathers, Families and Healthy Communities Collaborative.