Research and Community Projects
Homeless Garden Project Program Evaluation
The Homeless Garden Project (HGP) provides job training for low-income and homeless women and men in Santa Cruz. HGP runs a working, organic farm, including a successful Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, and retail store. CJTC is working with HGP to document the impact of their programs.
Photo courtesy of Homeless Garden Project
Dispelling Myths Surrounding the Incarceration of LGBTQ Youth
This project, led by Dr. Angela Irvine, CJTC Research Associate, aims to: (1) deepen our understanding of the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth involved with the juvenile justice system; (2) examine relationships between home, school, homelessness, and incarceration; (3) compare whether detention rates of LGBTQ youth differ in juvenile reform and non-reform sites; (4) assess if/how programs serving LGBTQ youth incorporate and/or serve parents/guardians; (5) investigate the availability of services for currently or formerly incarcerated LGBTQ youth; and (6) build a foundation for data collection and a research infrastructure for future academic work in the area of LGBTQ youth and the juvenile justice system.
Live Oak: A Community Snapshot
CJTC researchers worked with the Live Oak Family Resource Center to help produce "Live Oak: A Community Snapshot" (2008).

The CJTC provided statistical analysis of Census data on the neighborhood, assisted with the compilation of other data, and offered writing, editing, and translation assistance.
The report was released in February 2008 at an event that brought together over 200 community members, local leaders, and university members.
The Live Oak Family Resource Center has since used the report as an organizing tool to inform their community and to create a set of shared goals.
CJTC Collaborative Research Program
The CJTC introduced a small grants program to fund collaborative research projects undertaken by UCSC faculty and their community partners. Funded projects draw on diverse research methodologies and span a broad range of social and economic justice concerns, but share a common emphasis on accessibility to the public, especially community leaders and decision-makers. All funded projects strengthen community ties and promote equity, a central focus of our grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
With generous support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the following collaborative projects were supported:
Derailing the Prison Pipeline through Education
Aída Hurtado, Department of Psychology, and Barrios Unidos
What Do You Want To Do? Facilitating Empowerment through Collaborative Action-Based Research
Regina Day Langhout, Department of Psychology; Elizabeth Schilling, LOFRC; Debbie Wilson, Principal, Live Oak Elementary; Judy Kessler, Teacher, Live Oak Elementary; and Bonnie Thurston, Live Oak Elementary
Visit the Viva Live Oak website to learn more about this project.
Cultivating Social Justice through Organized Garden Projects
Mary Beth Pudup, Department of Community Studies and Bay Area Community Gardens

The Project: Another School and Another Community Are Possible!
Ron Glass, Department of Education; Rodney Ogawa, Department of Education; Aptos-Watsonville Adult Education; Cabrillo College; Community Alliance for a Sustainable Economy; La Manzana Community Resources; Live Oak Family Resource Center; Live Oak School District; Pajaro Valley Unified School District; and Santa Cruz County Office of Education
Understanding the Undocumented in Santa Cruz County
Patricia Zavella, Department of Latin American and Latino Studies; Javier Carrillo, California Diabetes Program; and Carmen Alicia Robles, Santa Cruz Health Services Agency Administration
Evaluating the Digital Bridge Academy
The Digital Bridge Academy (DBA), a program originating at Cabrillo College's Watsonville campus, serves underprepared community college students, using a student cohort model, accelerated academic courses, and curriculum designed to "light the fire" in students.

CJTC researchers have completed the following reports about the DBA:
• Institutional Trailblazing: Replicating and Expanding the Digital Bridge Academy
by Miranda Schirmer, Heather Bullock, and Rachel Rosner
June 2008
• Feeding the Fire: Professional Development and the Digital Bridge Academy Faculty Training
by Miranda Schirmer, Rachel Rosner, Rebecca London, and Heather Bullock October 2007
• Passing the Torch: An Evaluation of the Digital Bridge Academy Replication by Rebecca London, Miranda Schirmer, and Breana George October 2006
Pathways Into and Out of Homelessness: Women, Families, Hardship and Hope
Principal Investigator: Heather Bullock
This longitudinal study evaluates women's experiences of homelessness and the challenges confronting low-income families in Santa Cruz County.

Interviews focus on factors and events that contribute to homelessness as well as those that help families move into secure housing arrangements. The impact of homelessness on family relationships and experiences accessing services are also examined.
The Effects of Home Computer Ownership for Teenagers
Primary Investigators: Rob Fairlie and Jon Robinson, Department of Economics
With support from Zero Divide and Computers for Classrooms

This study examines the impact of home computers and internet access on the school performance of low-income youth. The findings will provide insight into relationships among technology, access, and educational inequality.
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