What If
Smart Schools Meet Smart Growth
The strategies for planning and designing smarter schools coincide
with those for planning to accommodate the principles of smart
growth. The most viable means for accommodating California's projected
population and infrastructure needs for the next two decades is
through a combination of more compact suburban development and
a renewal of cities and towns. The planning and design of more
community-centered schools can enhance the principles of smart
growth. By serving as a catalyst for inner-city development, the
proper planning of schools can help by: 1) Creating magnets for
urban development; 2) Encouraging the development of inner-city
housing and employment opportunities; 3) Improving mobility; 4)
Reducing suburban migration; 5) Conserving greenfields.
Likewise, the implementation of smart growth principles supporting
more urban development can improve education reform by: 6) Encouraging
the creation of learning communities within the rich infrastructure
of the urban environment; 7) Enhancing opportunities for community
access and participation; and 8) Supporting teachers and school
personnel by providing more affordable and attractive places to
live and work.
1) Creating Urban Magnets
One of the key ingredients in the development of more viable
cities and towns is to provide public facilities that act as magnets
for development in inner cities and in already established suburbs.
These magnets include things like libraries, parks, fitness and
recreation centers, arts centers, and clinics for health and human
services. One of the most important of these public facilities
is a thriving and healthy system of public education.
2) Encouraging Inner City Housing and Employment Opportunities
The market for inner-city housing for families is in many cases
dependent on the quality of inner-city schools. The design of
more community-centered schools provides an opportunity for the
development of more livable inner-city neighborhoods. To the degree
that a larger number of smaller schools can be implemented, opportunities
exist to provide access to educational facilities that are within
close proximity, or even within walking distance to home. The
result can be increased parental participation, less dependence
on vehicular transportation and increased quality of life. To
the degree that schools can also be designed to serve as social,
recreational and cultural centers of their communities, these
resources can also be provided with greater access and convenience.
Another factor influencing the development of inner-city housing
is employment opportunities. Last year, schools alone employed
327,198 certified staff in the state of California. Schools, especially
when combined with other community activities, can offer employment
opportunities for administrative staff, teachers and support personnel.
3) Improving Mobility
In 1997-98, K-12 schools in the state of California spent $1,400,658,122
on transportation. Through the design of smaller schools and more
compact neighborhood environments where parents, teachers and
school personnel can find affordable housing within close proximity
to schools, personal mobility can be enhanced and costs can be
reduced. Within the more compact urban context, school transportation
can also be more easily coordinated with existing public transit
than in other places.
4) Reducing Suburban Migration
Developing schools as centers of community with increased access,
community participation and improved academic achievement can
help to create more livable communities and neighborhoods in the
inner city. Many residents fleeing the inner city for the suburbs
are leaving in search of more stable and dependable schools. One
way to help reverse the trend of outward migration is to develop
schools in cities and townships that encourage community involvement,
achieve academic excellence and attract more people to live and
raise their families there.
5) Conserving Greenfields
Every acre of brownfield developed in the inner city conserves
at least one acre of greenfield in the rural environment and,
depending on density, possibly more. Five to ten percent of California's
urban areas, some 250,000 to 520,000 acres, are brownfields, empty
lots and abandoned buildings (Bank of America et al, Beyond Sprawl:
New Patterns of Growth to Fit the New California).
6) Building Learning Communities
Every community is a rich, information-filled database in full
motion, where math, science, language arts and social studies
are embedded in a set of resources that we use every day to explore,
discover, innovate and produce. Integrating schools with their
community in a way that enhances opportunities for mentorships,
internships, shared facilities and other uses of the physical,
cultural, social, economic and organizational environment as a
teaching tool can be accomplished in suburban as well as rural
environments. However, these opportunities are more accessible
in the urban context of cities and towns where these community
resources are more dense and proximate.
7) Increasing Community Participation and Access
Developing schools that serve as the center of their communities
requires collaboration between students, parents, educators and
community leaders and residents. Increased participation in the
planning and implementation of more integrated and accessible
school facilities provides opportunities to develop stronger and
more lasting interactions and relationships among all community
stakeholders.
8) Supporting Teachers and School Personnel
Developing smaller schools and affordable housing in the urban
environment provides opportunities for teachers and school personnel
with limited incomes to live within close proximity to public
transit, or even within walking distance to their work. Opportunities
also exist through tax increment and other financing strategies
to encourage developers to create affordable and subsidized housing
for all school personnel.
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