Urban Edge

Sharp insights. Smart solutions. Better cities.

More options in career and technical education can bolster Houston’s workforce

School districts throughout the Houston area offer students a plethora of career and technical education (CTE) programs, but a lack of alignment between such initiatives and the living-wage job market can significantly impact career trajectories and future earnings.

Who are Houston’s newcomer students, and how can schools help them succeed?

When immigrant children and teens enter the United States, the transition can be overwhelming.

How research helps Spring ISD drive student success

Leaders in Spring ISD don’t have to look far to find district graduates who have benefited from their schools’ Career and Technical Education programs. Michael King, a 2018 grad, is an audio/video technician in the district’s technology department, an example of talent and dedication meeting opportunity.

More data, more connected: Dive into the updated Houston Community Data Connections dashboard

After a year of planning, development and collaboration with our partners, the Kinder Institute for Urban Research is proud to release a significant update to Houston Community Data Connections, a long-standing initiative to make local data more accessible to the public.

Why thousands of Houston-area households could soon lose a crucial internet subsidy

A program aimed at helping underserved communities afford internet service is expected to end in the coming months, a potential setback for efforts to close the digital divide.

Research shows benefits of guaranteed income as launch of Harris County pilot program nears

With applications for the new local guaranteed income program Uplift Harris now closed, the pilot is preparing to launch.

Houston needs skilled workers. They might be at your local high school.

Houston is facing a growing demand for highly educated and skilled workers.

Closing local achievement gaps begins with closing spending gaps in Houston, Harris County

Academic achievement gaps cost the U.S. economy trillions of dollars each year, according to estimates by McKinsey and Co. Yet we have not made significant progress toward closing these gaps since we began measuring them in 1969 through the National Assessment of Educational Progress, despite significant developments in teaching and learning.

Seeking Solutions: Connect Community bolsters success of new immigrants in southwest Houston

Since its founding in 2016, Connect Community and its partners have put $126 million toward community development and holistic revitalization in the Gulfton and Sharpstown neighborhoods in southwest Houston.

Residents leave Houston neighborhoods thanks in part to climate change

According to a report by First Street Foundation, 9% of census blocks in Harris County are listed as “climate abandonment areas,” where people are moving out due at least partially to climate change-related flood risk and not being replaced by incoming homebuyers.