Black to the Future

• In Event: School, Community, and Family Partnerships in Support of Black Success

Abstract

Amidst a climate of skyrocketing real estate prices, pervasive political disenfranchisement of African Americans, and drastic atrophy in political acknowledgment and support towards public health and safety programs from Washington, the need among San Francisco's African American population for community and educational support has never been more dire.  Black to the Future (BttF) is a San Francisco-based community program, that works in coordination with the San Francisco Human Rights Commission and committed to combatting these ills. BttF provides high-needs African-American families and clients with counseling support, vocational training, and other critical services under five distinct umbrellas: education, family support, health & wellness, violence prevention, and workforce & occupation. Through its model of supporting families and individuals suffering as a result of these interwoven areas of need, BttF works to assure safety and resiliency among its target population, which translates to educational success and improved future access. This presentation's aim is to highlight the unique and widespread work BttF is doing for its community, and show through a combination of interlinked qualitative and quantitative research methods how BttF's model is both effective and transferrable to a larger scale among disenfranchised urban communities.

By BttF estimates, African American residents of San Francisco are being priced out of their homes at a rate of 1.2% per year as of 2010.  African American unemployment in San Francisco hovers at 19%, and 32% of African Americans in San Francisco live under the poverty line. These factors among others put 30% of African Americans living in San Francisco at risk of mental health concerns as a result of trauma. In schools, these factors all translate to an African American student population that comprising 9% of SFUSD's overall student body but around 50% of all suspensions.  

These factors illustrate the social, institutional, and economic pressures upon African Americans in San Francisco, and the degree to which these pressures have limited housing, employment, mental health, and educational opportunities for this population. In the education of African American youth in San Francisco, all of these challenges compound to create a the situation of frustration and hopelessness.  BttF's partner programs are collecting qualitative & quantitative community & school climate data from SFUSD African American students, teachers, and families to illustrate how these factors effect student educational experiences as relates to a sense of focus and safety at school and in their communities. From this data, a partner service index was created the findings of which indicates the amount of hours required on average to address individual needs under the BttF model.  Our preliminary findings suggest that this culturally responsive and community-centric service umbrella addresses many of these concerns with great efficiency. When weighed against high costs of incarceration, mental and physical health insurance costs, and costs associated with homelessness in San Francisco, we hope to establish that the BttF model is a valuable investment in the interest of supporting African-American urban communities.

Authors

• Max Greiner, University of San Francisco

• Malik S. Henfield, University of San Francisco

• Lisa De La Rue, University of San Francisco