Promise And Betrayal: Universities And The Battle For Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods

Argues that universities can help revitalize poor neighborhoods.

Traditionally, institutions of higher education have been viewed as the gateway to a better future, despite the fact that so many of the neighborhoods surrounding them have been filled with hopelessness and despair. In Promise and Betrayal, the authors want nothing less than to start a revolution in higher education, calling on partnerships between "town and gown" to create sustainable urban neighborhoods. John I. Gilderbloom and R. L. Mullins Jr. detail how higher education institutions can play an important role in helping to revitalize our poor neighborhoods by forming partnerships with public, private, and nonprofit groups. They advocate leaving the "ivory tower" and supplying the community with expert knowledge as well as creative and technical resources.

“…Gilderbloom and Mullins make the case that few institutions of higher learning apply their knowledge and resources directly to the problems of poverty and housing in their midst. Thus, the reference to ‘Betrayal’ in the title.” — The Courier Journal, Louisville, Kentucky

"This book by Gilderbloom and Mullins is an important contribution to the field and should be read by university and community leaders as well as policy makers at all levels." — from the Foreword by Henry Cisneros, Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

"This is a must read for anyone who wrestles with the moral obligations of academic development." — Tom Ingram, President, Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges

"With rich examples, including Yale, Penn, Marquette, and the University of Louisville, the authors provide a long-awaited analysis of where the ties between universities and communities stand today, and the directions they must be headed in if the American dream of one society is ever to be realized." — Neal Peirce, The Washington Post Writers Group