Using community-based system dynamics to understand connections between housing and education: A case study with...

In some communities, schools and housing agencies are innovatively partnering to prevent family homelessness and protect students from the negative outcomes associated with housing hardship. While there is increasing interest in expanding the array of housing solutions via school-housing partnership, more research is needed to understand the complex experiences of families navigating the housing services sector to understand how housing agencies and schools can best partner to support families. In this case study, Greater Boston housing crisis response staff and school personnel were convened to build a shared understanding of the connections between housing and education using community-based system dynamics techniques. Participants illuminated that organizational capacity, foundational trusting relationships, and coordination between organizations are intertwined to shape the experiences of families and children navigating school. Findings suggest a need to further integrate the housing services sector and build system capacity, so as to facilitate school-housing partnership success in promoting family wellbeing and better housing and educational outcomes.