1. Weekly reading responses and seminar question.

In 150 to 200 words, write a subjective response to every week’s assigned readings. Did you find the readings convincing? Did you disagree with the authors’ arguments? Explain why. What parts of the reading were difficult to understand? Is there additional information or explanation you would find helpful? Conclude with one question you have about the readings or topic, that would be suitable for class discussion. Responses and questions may be about one or several of the week’s assigned readings. You will receive credit simply for completing each week’s response, unless it is clear that you have not read the texts. Each student may miss three weeks of reading responses without penalty. Post your response on the course blog each Tuesday by 1pm, using the category “Reading responses”.

2. Neighborhood research project.

Individually and in groups, over the course of the entire semester, you will research one New York City neighborhood. Using a series of research methods, you will gain an in depth understanding of existing conditions in the neighborhood and the forces shaping its future. After completing the first two research assignments individually, as a group you will decide on one challenge, problem, or crisis facing the neighborhood to study. You will research the issue extensively, and draft a proposal to address it. Here are the five distinct phases of your research project:

1. Neighborhood observation (due 2/24). On your own, visit the neighborhood and observe its physical and social characteristics. Walk all around the neighborhood, but make sure to spend an extended period of time in at least two distinct public spaces (for example, a park, residential street, or commercial thoroughfare), spending 20-30 minutes in each space. Take as many notes as possible and talk to people if you feel comfortable doing so. Make sure to record the date, time, and specific location. What are your first impressions? What surprises you? What kinds of housing, businesses, amenities (e.g. parks, transportation) and institutions (e.g. schools, hospitals, churches, public housing complexes) do you see? What condition are they in? What kinds of people do you see? Pay attention to age, gender, race, class, ethnicity, and physical appearance. Who is here and who is not? How do different groups interact, or not? What kinds of activities are happening? What are the busiest parts of the neighborhood? How are people using neighborhood spaces to meet their needs?  Try to form an initial opinion about the neighborhood, as subjective as it may be. Use your notes to prepare a 500 word written description (due on the course blog by February 24 at 1pm, using the category “Neighborhood observations”) and a 3-5 minute oral presentation about your findings (to be presented in class on February 24).

2. Public meeting (due 3/10). On your own, attend and report on a public meeting involving a political or city planning matter in your neighborhood. Start looking for a meeting to attend AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. The simplest option will likely be to find a community board meeting in your neighborhood. (Alternatively, you can attend an open meeting of a community organization, a panel discussion, or a public presentation). Community board websites with meeting calendars can be found here. You may attend a meeting of the full board, or a committee or subcommittee; try to find one that is relevant to the project. Keep in mind that most meetings are in the evening. You should attend at least one hour of the meeting (or the full meeting if it is less than an hour long), and observe, taking notes. Report on the main topic(s) of discussion, what was said at the meeting, and by whom. What was the resolution, if anything? What information would you like to have to learn more about the issues discussed? Do not provide a transcript of everything that was said – instead, summarize the key arguments and points that were made, using direct quotes if you like. Prepare a 500 word written report about the meeting (due on the course blog by March 10 at 1pm, using the category “Meeting reports”) and a 3-5 minute oral presentation about your findings (to be presented in class on March 10).

3. Neighborhood challenge proposal (due 3/10). As a group, identify one important challenge, problem, or crisis facing the neighborhood that you would like to research in greater depth. It may relate to one of the four major crises – housing, income inequality, climate change, or policing – examined in this course; it may relate to a more specific aspect of these crises, e.g. homelessness, public housing, stop and frisk, or the effects of Hurricane Sandy; or it may relate to a separate issue altogether. As a group, prepare a 150-200 word written proposal explaining how you know this is an important issue facing the neighborhood. Include at least two references to make your case – you may cite your own research, media references, or scholarly references. Post your 150-200 word proposals to the course blog by March 10 at 1pm, using the category “Research proposal”.

4. Neighborhood challenge report (due 3/31). As a group, research the history and present situation of the issue you have chosen. This aspect of the neighborhood research project will be mostly descriptive – give your audience a sense of the general scope and character of the problem, how it emerged, and what it looks like today. Research the issue at two scales: Examine the problem as a city-wide issue (e.g. ‘homelessness in New York City’ or ‘policing in New York City’); and investigate how it manifests in your study neighborhood to provide a concrete case study of the problem (e.g. ‘the case of Red Hook’ or ‘the case of Crown Heights’). How has the problem emerged? Which particular social actors and political interests have shaped the issue? What has been the role of government, capital, and communities in producing and responding to the problem? Prepare a 2,000 word written report (due on the course blog by March 31 at 1pm, using the category “Group research report”) and a 7-10 minute multimedia presentation about your findings (to be presented in class on March 31).

5. Neighborhood planning proposal (due 4/28). As a group, create a plan to address the problem you are studying. Your group will prepare a 2,000 word written proposal; your group will also prepare a 10 minute multimedia presentation that begins with a condensed version (5 minutes, maximum) of your first multimedia presentation and continues with a presentation of your proposal. In other words, your final multimedia presentation will briefly explain the problem and then outline a proposed solution. Your written proposal may include a one-paragraph (maximum) explanation of the problem, but otherwise should not recapitulate the content of your first written report. The 2,000 word written proposal is due on the course blog by April 28 at 1pm (using the category “Group planning proposal”) and multimedia presentations will be given both in class on April 28, and at the Seminar 4 Common Event at Macaulay on May 2 or 3.

Assignment requirements:

• Establish the principles that will guide your plan. (These might include, but are not limited to: social justice, environmental justice, human rights, anti-displacement, anti-violence, or anti-racism).
• Whose interests are at the heart of your plan? Make a list of the social groups that will stand to benefit. (These might include, but are not limited to: existing tenants, youth, or low-income families).
• Find out how communities, activists, and planners in New York City and elsewhere have addressed the issue in the past and present. Craft your proposal in light of your findings. What has been effective about these plans? How will your plan build on these successes? What do you propose to do differently?
• Find out what current plans or policies are shaping the issue. What plans or policies are currently in place to ameliorate the problem, but do not go far enough? How will you improve on them? Which ones are exacerbating the problem? How will you address them?
• Based on this research, create your own 5-10 point plan for addressing the issue in New York City as a whole. Be creative!
• Finally, paint a picture (not literally, necessarily) of what your plan will look like, using your study neighborhood as a hypothetical case study. How would your plan alter the future of the neighborhood? How would it affect the social and physical makeup of the neighborhood? How would residents experience the neighborhood differently?
• Don’t be afraid to think big: Your plan need not be beholden to existing constraints such as current tax structures, laws, or institutions. If your plan requires the transformation or abolition of existing structures, laws, or institutions, explain why such a change is necessary and indicate the intended effects of such a change.