All semester, a group of students at Kenneth D. Bailey Academy in Danville have been studying the impacts that living in public housing can have on the mental health of those who live there. They presented their findings at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s annual undergrad symposium on Thursday.
The student-led research project was part of the school’s YPAR (Youth Participatory Action Research) program. Students participated as part of their weekly classwork in Elizabeth Schnepel and Jessica Lafler’s classes.
Students involved in the YPAR program also presented a research project at UIUC last year, where they shared their findings on the connection between poverty and crime.
Key findings this semester included a general misunderstanding of what the term “mental health” means, due to “biased stereotypes and false information.”
Students also found that “most residents of public housing believe that mental health and public housing are related, which will help to improve both in the future,” the research conclusion reads.
There is also the question of which came first. Do people living in public housing develop mental health issues, or do people with mental health issues end up living in public housing?
Many of the people who responded to their surveys believe that having mental health issues can lead to living in public housing.
There is also a trend of people living in public housing dealing with a sense of instability, as many of the people who responded to their surveys said they are unsure where they will be living in five years.
The YPAR program is designed to give students a chance to take the initiative and learn how to do their own research, but it doesn’t end there. They also learn how to put together plans for actionable change.
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