Taking hard looks at social issues
Urban Go-Team students stress action outside of classrooms
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| Teens with the Urban Go-Team take a walking tour near north St. Louis with Mike Baldwin, right, director of the Pruitt-Igoe Development Corps. Baldwin spoke about grass-roots efforts of residents to improve their neighborhoods and the obstacles they face. |
Debaun, along with a dozen other high school students from across the metro area, recently spent a week in an urban-development boot camp of sorts. The Urban Go-Team program takes high school students out of the classroom and involves them in issues not found in textbooks.
The group met with a Post-Dispatch columnist, a KMOX-AM radio talk show host, state Sen. Jeff Smith and St. Louis Alderman Jeffrey Boyd. They discussed issues of public funding for Ballpark Village, still a hole in the shadow of the new Busch Stadium, and urban decay in north St. Louis.But for many of the teenagers, several of whom are students at Maplewood-Richmond Heights High School, one of the most important issues they looked at is one they expect will have a direct impact on the makeup of their student body.
The Richmond Heights/Hadley Township development is slated to bring a 50-acre, mixed-use development to the area sometime next year. It will consist of around 300,000 square feet of retail space and several restaurants and smaller shops. The area now is the site of 187 homes and 52 students in the Maplewood-Richmond Heights School District, most of whom are black.
Debaun and her fellow Go-Team members are concerned about the social implications of pricing low- to moderate-income earners out of their homes for the development. They're concerned about those 52 students possibly leaving the district and what impact that would have on their diverse student population.
And after speaking with those living in the area slated for demolition, they're even more concerned about the lack of information from city officials.
Debaun said a number of the residents she spoke with expressed frustration about the lack of communication from both the city and the developer.
"It makes you wonder why we are the ones out there and not the adults," said Allsion Reed of Normandy.
A call to the Richmond Heights city manager about the situation was not immediately returned.
Rachel Pinson will enter her senior year at MRH High School this fall. She said she's worried about the development pushing out low-income people in favor those with higher incomes.
"Our school has really come a long way, but I'm worried about bringing in high-income people that will most likely go to private school," Pinson said. "One of the best things about the school is that it's diverse people from different backgrounds."
That same diversity is reflected in the make-up of the Urban Go-Team. Some live in Chesterfield, others in north St. Louis. Some attend private schools, and others attend public schools. The issues that concern them run a broad spectrum, from quality education to affordable housing.
"We try not to represent a vested interest," said Arthur Lieber of Civitas, who runs the program. "We're not interested in protecting so-and-so's job. We don't have a locked-in mentality.
"If we succeed in what we do, 10, 20, 30 years from now we will have people who can look at the broader picture and not just, 'What's in it for me?'" Lieber said.
The students involved in the Urban Go-Team said they wonder why most teens their age don't participate. After all, it is their future at stake.
"We want kids to act outside of their high school bubble," said Candis Johnson of St. Charles. "It's important for students to become active citizens."
You can contact Erin Taylor at etaylor@yourjournal.com.
Want to be a member?
Teens interested in the Urban Go-Team can participate by calling (314) 367-6480 or by e-mailing info@civitas-stl.com.
