Economics of Urban Education

Over the past 30 years, in the mass media and educational stakeholder and research communities, there has been increased interest in urban education. A controversial report, A Nation At Risk (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983), fueled the current discussion about the underperformance of American schools, especially in urban areas. The attention of countless policies, billions of dollars, and innumerable person hours have been spent trying to fix urban schools. Since the Industrial Revolution, there has been a population boom in America’s urban cities. The majority of individuals now live in urban areas, and these areas have unique economic environmentsenvironments that have adverse effects on education. Considering that economic growth and prosperity are tied to the quality of education within a country (Hanushek & Kimko, 2000), special attention must be given to the unique economic environments that surround students, families, and other education stakeholders in urban areas.