COM 0934.001 2006-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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--..o_o_.. . Page I of 2 Mortgage Assistance for Public Em to ees There is a shortage of highly-qualified teachers, firefighters and police officers in many low- income areas. By any measure, schools in high-poverty areas have fewer well-qualified teachers than schools in more affluent areas.' For example, only 19 percent of National Board Certified Teachers (NBC1) are at schools in the bottom third of performance for their state and only 12 percent of NBCTs are in schools that provide more than 75 percent of students with free or reduced-price lunch.2 At least two-thirds of the nation's fire departments are understaffed, and the Bush Administration is phasing out the Clinton-era CAPS community policing program-even though many cities that are likely to be targeted by terrorists have steadily shrinking police forces a Because of the unique challenges of these communities, the best professionals are needed there. Low-income areas have a greater need for government services. Children in higb-risk schools need more special education staff and school social workers. In low-income neighborhoods, there are more police emergency calls and a greater need for community policing. There are more-and more serious-fires in the same neighborhoods. Despite their pressing need for high-quality government services, they are also the toughest areas to staff Housing assistance would be a strong recruiting incentive because Americans who earn moderate incomes are being priced out of the housing market. Median home prices across America increased by 5o percent from 2000 to 2005.4 In many areas of the country, the American Dream of becoming a home-owner is simply out of reach. One effective way to recruit the most experienced and effective teachers, police officers, and firefighters to low-income areas is to offer them mortgage assistance. Attracting moderate income earners to areas of concentrated poverty can help to stabilize those areas and promote economic growth. Sociologists have found that bringing middle-income homeowners into low-income neighborhoods has a number of advantages. It tends to reduce crime and other anti-social conduct, whether or not there is social interaction between middle- and low-income families.s Middle-income neighbors act as role models for children and give job-hunting adults access to informal networks for finding employment. And middle-income residents greatly improve a community's quality of life when they use the political process to demand improved municipal services.s This stabilizing effect is even more profound when middle-income residents also work in the community. It means they have a strong investment-both financial and social-in remaking the neighborhood into a safe, healthy and vibrant community for the longterm. A federal program encourages teachers to live in low-income areas, but it is very limited. The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recognizes the importance of attracting professionals to areas targeted for revitalization. HUD has a program called "Teacher Next Door" that allows full-time certified schoolteachers to buy single-family homes at a 5o percent discount Unfortunately, the program is limited to homes with foreclosed HUD mortgages that are being sold over the Internet Only about 4,000 teachers have taken advantage of the Teacher Next Door program since 1999.1 To make a significant difference, public employees need more housing choices.