Segregation by Design [5.0]: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis, Student Version (2024)

Authors

Catalina Freixas, Washington University in St. LouisFollow

Contributors

Casey Niblett, Emily Sanders, Heather Heidbreder, Morgan Bryan, Maya Byrd, Chi Sheng Chen, Nate Halstead, Heather Heidbreder, Miso Lee, Theodore Levy, Song Yan Li, Alex Rubin, Jacqueline Traudt

Files

Description

Catalina Freixas, Associate Professor in Architecture, Washington University in St. Louis, Instructor and Editor, Segregation by Design, PI, The KingsVille Collaborative

Research for Segregation by Design was initiated by Assoc. Prof. Freixas and her research team in the Spring of 2022, and continued through the summer. Systematic observations and archival data was collected at that point. The work was supported by the SFS, research assistant funding and gave the foundation to the recommendations laid by the students during the semester.

The course Segregation by Design was supported by CityStudioSTL, Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, Washington University in St. Louis. The collected work was presented at Hickey Elementary School on December 16th, 2022. The Provost COVID Grant, allowed Freixas to continue the research after the winter break and complete this document.

“Segregation by Design” (SBD) was first offered during the Fall 2016 semester and has been offered each fall since then at both SFS and at HSSU, enrolling students from both universities. As with the three previous offerings, SBD 2018 offered SFS and HSSU students a cross-university, cross-disciplinary environment to respond to the importance of this issue. Taking advantage of the academic resources in the region, inter-university student teams developed mitigation plans for the community of Kingsville in the St. Louis metropolitan region. These two communities were selected because they both represent a unique challenge of attempting to undo decades of racial segregation without displacing long-time, low-income, African American residents.

As in previous semesters, the course was structured into two parts. The first part entailed a series of lectures and panels by scholars from universities in the region and professionals from the metropolitan area examining current literature and issues in segregation as well as data analysis and textual analysis of community-based publications and scholarly literature review by the students. The second part consisted of field-work in communities in metropolitan St. Louis involving extensive systematic observations, stakeholder interviews, focus groups, and visioning sessions (charettes) and the production of a report for the given community. For this, the teams were assisted by volunteer professional mentors from diverse fields and residents from the selected communities. Residents helped collect data through neighborhood surveys, organized neighborhood meetings, and helped devise mitigation strategies. A three-part project looking at: i. causation, ii. consequences, and iii. mitigation strategies led to the final report that analyzed segregation in each community and proposed potential design and policy remedies. This document serves as the compilation of the work of the students in detailing the history of the communities, causes and consequences of segregation, as well as, potential policy and design strategies. In addition, the work produced during the semester was added to the in a traveling exhibition.

Neighborhood Mentors: Mark Abbott. Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of History, Harris-Stowe State University, Former Director of Center for Neighborhood Affairs; Jasmine Aber. Ph.D. candidate, MA, Director CEL Center for Architecture and Design St. Louis; Judith Arnold. MA, Urban Planner, SLACO

Hickey Elementary Community Partners: Cote Brilliante Presbyterian Church, Dream Center, EyeSeeMe African American Book Store, Family Engagement Policy, Girl Scouts & Boy Scouts, Gateway Greening, Harris-Stowe State University, Healthy Schools Healthy Communities, Julia Davis Public Library, KingsVille Neighborhood Association, National Jewish Women’s Council, Operation Food Search, Missouri Forest ReLeaf, R. Whittington Foundation, St. Louis Association of Community Organizations (SLACO), St. Louis Chess Club, The M.A.D. Mentor Program, Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis

Document Type

Restricted Access Book

DOI

https://doi.org/10.7936/qe2n-jk46

Publication Date

2024

Publisher

Washington University in St. Louis

City

St. Louis (MO)

Disciplines

Architecture | Urban, Community and Regional Planning

Recommended Citation

Freixas, Catalina, "Segregation by Design [5.0]: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis, Student Version (2024)" (2024). Books and Monographs. 62.
https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/books/62