| The COPC at the University of Toledo in Toledo, Ohio, serves three neighborhoods that are located in a 2-square-mile region in the eastern section of the city. These neighborhoods--Auburn-Delaware, Bancroft-Upton-Monroe (BUMA), and Old Fairgrounds--maintain a diverse racial and ethnic mix of African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, and people of Polish, German, and Hungarian ancestry. Despite their diverse backgrounds, however, neighborhood residents share the common experience of poverty and the continued threat of neighborhood deterioration. Government reports indicate that the central city neighborhoods, including most of the COPC target area, are among the most economically devastated in the region. During the 1980s and early 1990s, the exodus of four of Toledo's seven Fortune 500 companies, and continued downsizing among remaining firms, threatened the city's economic base. The three targeted neighborhoods, situated in the core of the city, suffer the debilitating consequences of this exodus. Working cooperatively with its community partners, the COPC's Research and Outreach corps strive to empower residents to bring stability to their neighborhoods, provide affordable housing for first-time homebuyers, unite disadvantaged youth through a variety of programs, and generate economic development that fosters regional growth.
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