Fed researcher examines migration to Iowa, income gap for minorities

As more people move to Iowa from Illinois, Nebraska and other states, a Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago economic development researcher says education, housing, and employment will need to be addressed by policymakers.

Marva Williams spoke to about 100 people attending the Business 380 Excellence Business & Breakfast event Thursday at the Cedar Rapids Public Library.

Williams, who has responsibility for Iowa at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, said there are striking differences in the areas of personal income, employment, and education between the general population of Iowa and blacks who live in Iowa.

'Compared with the general population of adults who are not college students, African-American migrants to Iowa have lower personal incomes, lower educational attainment, more children under the age of 18 living in their homes, and higher percentages of divorced, separated, and never-married adults,” Williams said. 'They are more likely to be renters that are not currently employed and are often motivated to move for economic reasons, such as better employment options.

'The economic divide between whites and African-Americans is so wide ...

that the gap will not narrow for generations without significant policy changes.'

Williams said educational equality is a key to improving the opportunities for blacks and others moving to Iowa. She noted a recent study that found - on average - that five- and six-year-old children who live in higher-income homes have a larger vocabulary than those who live in lower-income households.

'Much of the preparation for education comes from the support of the family,” Williams said.

During a question-and-answer period, she was asked if racial segregation continues to exist in schools years after the U.S. Supreme Court's Brown vs. Board of Education ruling that outlawed the practice.

'I think that occurs because there's also income segregation in that most affordable housing in many cities is geographically concentrated,” Williams said. 'Because students attend classes in their neighborhoods, those schools therefore also become segregated.

'While I am not a policymaker in education, I definitely think integrated schools are part of the solution.”

Williams noted the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and the city of Cedar Rapids are co-sponsoring a free seminar April 30, also at the Cedar Rapids Public Library, that will examine how Iowa communities have responded to a sharp drop in industrial employment over the past 60 years.