The Glenn College has partnered with the Columbus City Council and the Franklin County Commissioners Office to identify the reasons why the Franklin County Municipal Court processes the largest volume of eviction cases in the state of Ohio—reaching nearly 18,000 cases each year.
Doctoral student, Stephanie Casey Pierce is leading the study directed at evicted tenants, landlords and the consequences of forced moves are creating across the city. The new study examines tenant experiences and their perceptions of the causes, the effects of evictions on homelessness and the relation of incarceration and eviction.
“This is the first time to roll out such a targeted study of the relationship between evictions and homelessness,” said Pierce. “We are looking at more structural, institutional and policy factors that have been ignored by academics and policymakers it’s an underexplored pathway.”
The study is challenging traditional explanations of housing instability by examining tenant experiences and their perceptions of the causes, the effects of evictions on homelessness and the relation of incarceration and eviction.
“Asking questions like do they have networks that can prevent them from becoming homeless, do they have an awareness of resources, what were some of the triggering events--did anything suddenly happen that lead to eviction—I want to separate the impoverished from homelessness,” said Pierce.
The initial report was completed by MPA student Kelsey Tschanen, whose capstone project contributed to establishing research feasibility. Tschanen conducted the preliminary in-person interviews with individuals awaiting their eviction hearing at the Franklin County Municipal Court. “We knew that Columbus had an abnormally high rate of evictions, but without any more information on exactly who was getting evicted, we didn't have the whole story,” said Tschanen. “Gathering details related to the tenant’s income, employment history, marital status, education history, prior eviction history and their personal explanation of the circumstances leading to their court appearance.”
Tschanen valued working on an issue deeply impacting her own community and strongly believes that the results of the work will have a positive impact in lowering the number of evictions in the future. “Having a real-world impact in my own community is the reason I chose to study public policy in the first place, so I am thrilled with the outcome of this project and excited to see where it goes from here.” Currently, Pierce is meeting with elected officials, government officials, nonprofit city leaders and service providers to align research questions with the issues affecting Franklin County.
Mike Hochron, MPA ’15, policy director for Franklin County Commissioner Marilyn Brown, has been a part of this effort to reach priority issues. “We have met to identify key data to enhance the impact of the research,” said Hochron. “I’ve appreciated the direction of Ms. Pierce’s dissertation work--she has helped us apply a research-guided lens to advance the policy work of our office.”
Hochron also indicated they are seeing some early benefits of the study. “The announcement of the study has helped to catalyze other efforts and provided enthusiasm and support to tackle these issues with more intention. I’m proud to say that Franklin County has assisted dozens of families maintain stable housing in just a few months since making targeted policy changes,” said Hochron.
Pierce expressed that the project has brought her great motivation and been an important personal reminder of the vast presence of this issue. Some of Pierce’s predictions of the immediate impacts of the study include the betterment of at risk screening tools, expansion of eviction emergency rent programs and creating more affordable housing options for those at risk for eviction.
“The phenomenon of evictions is very real and present in our society,” said Pierce. “When I first read Matthew Desmond's book, Evicted, what struck me the most was that it seemed as though it must be set in another era. It is not. The hardships families face and the poor conditions in which they are forced to live are happening right now. Unraveling the role of eviction in contributing to and extending poverty is critical for understanding how we can do a better job designing policy to address poverty and homelessness.”
A new round of field interviews with a revised protocol will begin this summer.
For more information about the study contact Stephanie Casey Pierce at pierce.576@osu.edu