Urban Edge

Insights, perspectives and stories about building better cities and better lives

Harris County contends with shortage of mental health workers despite landmark state investment

One of the barriers to accessing mental health care in Harris County and across Texas is a workforce shortage in the field.

Advocates for the homeless set for Houston’s annual count with funding, plan of action in flux

Next week, over 400 volunteers with the Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County will conduct the annual point-in-time count to determine if homelessness is increasing or decreasing in the area.

Why we’re taking a closer look at housing quality — and why we need your help

Over the last several years, we have come to understand that Houston is no longer as affordable as it once was. At the same time, relatively little has been learned about the quality of the places and spaces people call “home.” That’s why the Kinder Institute’s Housing Quality Registry is so urgently needed.

‘Any disruption spells disaster’: A deeper look at Houstonians’ financial vulnerability

Thirty-four percent of Harris County residents are financially secure, meaning they could go without a paycheck for three months or longer using just their savings, according to new Kinder Institute research.

How Houston's only public recovery high school is creating new paths for student success

Of all youth in Harris County, high schoolers had the highest rate of substance-involved health care facility visits and deaths from 2018-22, according to a new report.

Q&A: For Houston’s working poor, rising costs mean tougher choices

Over 725,000 households in the Houston area earn an income above the federal poverty line but cannot cover the rising cost of all of their essential needs, such as housing, health care and food, according to data compiled by United Way.

Housing, disasters, money and education: The Urban Edge in 2024

Extreme weather, the shortage of affordable housing and the benefits of prekindergarten were of greatest interest to Urban Edge readers this year, especially as they pertain to the Houston region.

Bilingualism is a strength Texas is failing to nurture for hundreds of thousands of students

Nearly one-fourth of all students in Texas public schools are emergent bilingual, meaning their home language is something other than English. Spanish is the most common home language among emergent bilingual students in the state, but over 60 languages are represented.

Making the case for increasing funding for Texas schools that need it most

Seventy percent of Houstonians believe schools need “significantly more” money to provide a quality education to students, a sentiment that has grown stronger since the Kinder Houston Area Survey began asking this question in the early 1990s.

Partnership with Houston Housing Authority offers an opportunity to rethink ‘opportunity’

In late 2023, the Houston Housing Authority received a $5 million federal grant to help move some of its families to so-called “opportunity neighborhoods,” areas with low poverty, high-quality schools and other amenities.