Educational outcomes during the Great Recession : effects of community, homeownership, and race.

Abstract

The 2007 Great Recession had a considerable impact on the economic status of many Americans. However, this crisis did not affect all households equally, with members of disadvantaged populations often experiencing the most negative outcomes. With these considerations in mind, this study seeks to address the question of how housing tenure and community belonging affected the educational progress of young people transitioning to adulthood during the recent crisis. Were young adults who lived with homeowning family members more likely to experience educational progress than young adults who lived on their own or with renting family members? How did educational progress vary by race and ethnicity? Importantly, since community has been shown to be a source of social capital and connections which can influence education, what role does sense of belonging to a community play in this relationship?