Studentification: The Role of the University
Written: Olutunmike Adeleye
08 May 2023
A hallmark of the college freshman experience for many students is living in a dormitory. For most students, this is their first time living with no parental supervision, allowing them to branch out and try new things in a community of their peers. After spending a year or two in the dorm, however, college students are faced with a choice. When institutions do not guarantee housing, they force students to obtain off-campus housing. Students often choose to live in communities close to their universities. When universities are located in urban areas, this can mean that students are living in communities that have historically housed minority groups. This phenomena is known as studentification when groups are pushed out of their communities by student populations. Studentification is defined as, “the situation where academic anchor institutions participate in the gentrification process, through direct investment procedures or changes in the housing market for students (Cole 161). Studentification is a subset of gentrification, which does not depend on the presence of student populations or universities to result in a change in demographics. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is a city where it is easy to see the effects of studentification are present. Not only is Philadelphia one of the largest cities in the United States, it also has no shortage of educational institutions that cater to large numbers of students (Cole 161). Private universities with more money and resources at their disposal continue to expand and grow, “their activities to participate in neighborhood revitalization processes,” and create environments that allow studentification to thrive differently from smaller public universities (Cole 161). This paper examines how universities use their resources to implement and expand studentification in communities surrounding their campuses by comparing one private and one public university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Two universities in Philadelphia where studentification has thrived are the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University. The University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) is a private university that was chartered in 1749 because leaders believed Philadelphia, “needed a university in order to join the ranks of other world-class cities” (Etienne 15). The mission of the university was to prepare men to work in the fields of commerce and public service (Ettienne 16). As Philadelphia’s demographic became more industrialized, the mission of UPenn changed and it is now a leading research university in the US. UPenn moved from its location in City Center Philadelphia to where it currently resides in West Philadelphia (Ettienne 23). West Philadelphia was much less industrialized than its original location had been and was intended to be a quieter campus, but this didn’t last. “Within fifty years, West Philadelphia closely resembled the bustling city the university had moved to avoid,” (Etienne 23). The university is now home to nearly 25,000 students, over seventy-five percent of which hail from a state other than Pennsylvania (University of Pennsylvania Diversity: Racial Demographics & Other Stats). Housing at UPenn is only guaranteed to students for the first four semesters after which students are required to live off campus, and students aim to find housing in the areas surrounding the campus (Get Ready to #LivePenn). As students begin to flood the housing market in surrounding neighborhoods, studentifcation is able to take root. Over time, UPenn has been working to create an environment conducive to student life as they have strived to create a, “‘connected and walkable’ academic village,” which has enabled studentification in the community (Ettienne 21).
Temple University is a public university that has been located in North Philadelphia since 1884 (History). Though the university has expanded its reach by opening more campuses throughout Philadelphia, as well as two located in Europe, it has continued to reside in its original location. Of Temple’s student population, about thirty five percent of students are from out of state, meaning they will need to access some form of off-campus housing when it is no longer guaranteed to them by their institution after their fourth semester on campus (Housing & Dining). Temple has about 10,000 students who live on or around what they call their, “increasingly residential campus,” meaning these students are living in the same communities as residents from Philadelphia have lived in all their life (Campuses). As Temple is working to make the surrounding areas more suitable for students living off campus, conflict with surrounding neighborhoods occurs as they begin to see the consequences of studentification first hand.
The consequences of studentification can range from changes in the racial demographics of communities to issues such as students taking up homes that once belonged to native Philadelphians. The rise in student populations causes new developers interested in catering to these students to be drawn into said communities. Examples of this can are locally owned grocery stores being replaced with, “New businesses, youthful energy, cool eateries, and modern grocery stores,” (Stewart) a disappearance of playgrounds and other community areas dedicated to families, or new buildings, such as apartments, built to house the younger student population (Revington 1426). As these new buildings and businesses thrive, property values rise, which leads to higher rents and shorter leases and eventually pushes out community members and families who may have lived in these areas for generations (Revington 1426). This is a pattern very familiar to UPenn. UPenn’s mission statement emphasizes their, “inherent culture and ecosystem of innovation,” and they have aimed to “innovate” the areas surrounding the university’s campus (About). As a means of expanding the university's reach, Penn took advantage of the 1961 Section 112 Amendment to the Housing Act of 1949, which allowed it to seize, “land to eradicate neighborhood “blight” and promote redevelopment,” (Ettienne 121). Ultimately, UPenn’s actions led to the displacement of numerous members of Black Bottom, a predominantly black neighborhood as residents were pushed out of their homes as UPenn bought real estate in the community (Williams). As UPenn continued to clean up the surrounding neighborhoods, they formed the West Philadelphia Initiatives (WPI) as a strategy aimed at revitalizing University City (Ehlenz 717). Through this initiative University city saw, “new retail spaces, higher home values, reduced crime rates, and new public amenities,” (Ehlenz 717). In the 1990s, the demographics of University City changed. Before WPI, the area was suffering from white flight as the population of white residents fell by almost 4,000 as populations of black and Asian citizens continued to rise (Ehlenz 727). Once the changes from the WPI took effect, the white population once again rose, vacancy rates in the area lowered, and dwelling units declined as , “the demolition of blighted properties and conversion of multifamily homes back to their original single-family structures,” (Ehlenz 729). While across West Philadelphia median household incomes decreased, citizens in University City saw their median incomes rise and their median home values increase by over $200,000 (Ehlenz 730). Through WPI, UPenn continued to make University City more attractive to higher income residents and bought and renovated several apartment buildings and vacant homes (Garton 20). As a result of this, landlords in the area wanted UPenn to purchase their own buildings as they could not compete with what UPenn was offering new residents (Garton 22). Rent in the area rose and more university students were entering the area, allowing the cycle of studentification to take root.
After World War II, universities struggled with the rise in student populations as more women, veterans, and other minorities began to take advantage of higher education (Ettienne 121). Universities began expanding into their communities but did not take the time to help their students connect with the people already living there. When students do not take the time to connect with the residents the conditions are ripe for studentification. This is the case at Temple University as relations between the students and community members have been tense. The residents in North Philadelphia felt as though Temple students do not treat the community with care. Residents have complained about the, “mountains of trash” left outside of Temple frat houses in the community (Ratner). Rising student populations in an area often contribute to increases in disorder in a community, often leaving residents unhappy (Woldoff 261). Unfortunately, despite being unsatisfied with the conditions in the neighborhoods some residents do not have the resources to leave these areas and are not equipped with, “strategies to defend their communities,” such as forming neighborhood coalitions, organizing with local politicians and organizations, or involving the police (Woldoff 260). Some people may also not feel capable of complaining to the university as the institution may employ them and they do not want to risk alienating themselves (Woldoff 260). Students at Temple have also been complaining about the areas surrounding the university, often voicing their opinions through TikTok. One testimony from a native to the area around Temple states, “‘We would always hear about Temple kids complaining like ‘Oh North Philly is so bad, it's so dangerous … ’ One of the things you heard them say a lot was that Philly was super dirty,’” (Ratner). A video posted on TikTok by @heygranty, a native Philedelphian, discussed how many Temple students feel that the campus is unsafe citing many murders, shootings and robberies. He cites that students who cannot live in cheaper off-campus housing outside the bounds of where campus police patrol. One of the 1200 comments under this video, reads, “I mean it’s a result of displacing the local community for campus space and housing with no care for who lived there already,” (@c4tlitt3r). The cost of tuition for an out-of-state student at Temple is $30,864 dollars (Housing & Dining). This is only $1500 less than the average household income for a Philedelphian resident which is $32,344, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. As wealthy white students continue to enter these predominantly black and lower-class communities, conflicts between the residents and students will continue to arise. If Temple does nothing to address the tumultuous relationships, studentification will continue in the surrounding neighborhoods pushing out residents as, “disruptive behaviour, noise, poor property upkeep and parking issues,” will abound and the area will become more suited to student populations (Revington 1426).
Studentification is a topic that is new on researchers and university’s minds. It is important to note that the differences between studentification and gentrification often arise from the influence of universities. Universities have the power to, “alter the population composition, and thus housing markets and neighbourhood dynamics, in their proximity and beyond,” and often wield this power in ways that are working in their best interest regardless of the effects this has on local communities (Moos 1079). Though they have not in the past, as these institutions continue to expand their reach it is important they consider how their decisions are impacting the areas surrounding their campuses. Some schools have done this by implementing service learning courses, where students work with community partners so they can be more connected to the areas where they will spend their time. UPenn has done this through the Netter Center for Community Partnerships, which was founded in 1992 with the mission of , “advancing civic and community engagement at Penn,” (Netter Center for Community Partnerships). They have enacted a “democratic university-community engagement model, implementing their academically based community service courses and serving university-assisted community schools in order to better the relationships between UPenn faculty, staff, and students with local community members (Netter Center for Community Partnerships). Despite having made decisions in the past that have poorly affected surrounding areas, if universities are aware of the role they play in perpetuating studentification in communities, they can help create solutions to combat these issues that allow both student populations and established communities to thrive.
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