FREE ESSAY ON CARTER WOODSEN

CARTER WOODSEN

When you control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his actions. You do not
have to tell him not to stand here or go yonder. He will find his proper place and will
stay in it. You do not need to send him to the back door. He will go without being told.
In fact, If there is no back door, he will cut one for his special benefit. His education
makes it necessary. 
History shows that it does not matter who is in power those who have not learned to do
for themselves and have to depend solely on others never obtain any more rights or
privileges in the end than they had in the beginning. 
BY DR. Carter Woodson-The Mis-Education of the Negro
Social Policy 
Policy analysts, program developers, and managers in the public and nonprofit sectors,
face special problems as they seek to improve the well-being of particular groups in
society. This concentration provides students with an understanding of the policy,
management and programmatic issues and the difficult choices facing professionals working
to improve the economic well-being and social functioning of diverse groups while seeking
to further social integration in U.S. society. 
Housing and Community Development 
The concentration in housing and community development focuses on innovative approaches
for improving the quality of life within low-income urban communities, including
affordable housing and workforce development. It situates housing policy and community
development within the context of racial discrimination, global, national and regional
economic trends, the devolution of government responsibilities to the state and local
levels, the growing role of community development corporations and other nonprofit
organizations, and the implementation of welfare reform. In addition to lectures and
class discussions, courses also include visits to leading community-based organizations.
The concentration engages students in current policy debates, introduces them to
cutting-edge initiatives, and provides training in the technical and analytic skills
necessary for careers in government, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector. 
Urban Economic Development Policy 
This concentration consists of courses on the theory and practice of contemporary local
development policy. Our expertise is particularly strong in the analysis of urban labor
markets-the sources of underemployment, the so-called spatial mis-match between where
workers live and where the jobs are located within metropolitan regions, how job seekers
and employers find one another, and which public and private institutions work best to
facilitate that matching. This labor market focus extends to the study of racial and
gender discrimination in housing, schools, and jobs, as well as to the changing structure
and effects of immigration. Finally, this concentration is concerned with the role of
public infrastructure and strategies to promote private and public investments in local
business enterprise that can create jobs and add to the wealth of urban residents,
especially in communities of color. Faculty and students work on a rich mix of studies
and provide technical assistance to community groups, city and state agencies, and even
to particular private corporations. 
The program in Urban Policy Analysis and Management is on the roster of programs of the
National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA) in
accordance with NASPAA's standards for professional programs in public affairs. 
The program is an institutional member of the Urban Affairs Association and the
Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) and has been designated by
the Woodrow Wilson Foundation as eligible for Woodrow Wilson fellowships for minority
students who have completed the APPAM summer institutes. The program has a chapter of Pi
Alpha Alpha, the national honor society for public administration. 
KOZOL-Savage Inequalities reflection-------
Since I have been in this class, there have been many discussions on very general topics.
It really amazed me a few weeks ago when we began a discussion on Jonathan Kozol's book
Savage Inequalities. What really amazed me the most were the looks of amazement from many
of my fellow classmates when we began to discuss issues from the book. Few seemed
paralyzed from their amazement. Many, if not all, were shocked at such injustices and
realities; this just goes to show me that many of my fellow classmates are very, if not
completely, disconnected from such realities and only think that these problems exist in
Boston, East St. Louis, Mississippi and so on. What they fail to realize is, such
problems exist in their own backyard, here in New London, Hartford, Norwich, Bloomfield
and any other major urban area and adjoining suburbs.
These realities of poor/low achievement, low-motivation, decrepit schools, poor teachers
and teaching strategies are common-place to the poor, mis-educated urban population.
Having worked for several years in an urban and suburban (both predominantly accessed by
people of African descent-including Latino), I have seen, experienced and lived with the
realities and inequalities that Kozol mentions.
This really hits home hard for me because seeing these inequalities has given me the
drive and determination to be the best educator I can be. This is fuel for the fire. From
the reading, I have developed 5 insights I would like to bring to the table. 
-Why has racial segregation intensified over the years?
-How do we control the drop-out rate and why is it so high?
-What role does economic and political power play concerning education?
-What can be done in urban schools so that urban youth perform at the similar levels as
suburban children?
-Parental involvement. 
The first insight, why has racial segregation intensified over the years, really is a
trick question. The very essence and basis of this Capitalist society (The Constitution)
was and still is based on institutionalized segregation and racism. The Plantation system
mentality still permeates through every fabric of society as if we lived in city-state
Athens in 500 B.C.E., where the citizens have access to ALL rights and privileges
warranted to them; the metics are given limited access, and the slaves have no rights or
say what so ever within the Democratic society. So it comes as no surprise that today,
the ancestors of slaves, both indigenous and expatriate, see, feel and live a reality
that systematically and innately excludes them from the full benefits of the system. Even
with such progressive statues as Brown-vs-Topeka, racial segregation still exists and not
only in schools, employment, neighborhoods, politics and every aspect of life.
Bibliography
http://www.ecsu.ctstateu.edu/depts/edu/570/assignments/index.html