COVID-19 Updates

The Institute for Urban Policy Research & Analysis (IUPRA) team recognizes the challenging and changing times we are all facing right now. As we always work to be responsive to emerging issues—including the COVID-19 pandemic—some of our priorities have shifted during this time (click here to read our full statement on COVID-19). On this page, we've gathered resources, data sets, and articles that we believe may be of use or interest to our audience. As we conduct our own research in response to this pandemic, we will also list that content here.

For the latest updates from the University of Texas at Austin, go to https://coronavirus.utexas.edu/. 

IUPRA Content

• Be Counted: Why the Census Is So Important and Who Is at Risk | Issue brief by Ricardo Lowe, MS; Annika Olson, MA, MPP
• Education and the Digital Divide in Texas City Spotlight Series | Infographic series by IUPRA research team
• On the Frontline: A Demographic Portrait of Essential Workers in Texas | Numbers brief by Ricardo Lowe, MS
• The State of Small Black-Owned Businesses | Issue brief by Tracie Lowe, PhD
• The Digital Divide: COVID-19 and Older Adults Resource Sheet | This tip sheet lists resources highlighted in the below issue brief helpful for older adults or caretakers
• The Digital Divide: COVID-19 and Older Adults | Issue brief by Annika Olson, MA, MPP and Lynn Huynh
• The Digital Divide and Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic | Issue brief by Annika Olson, MA, MPP; Ricardo Lowe, MS; and Lynn Huynh
• Will COVID-19 Affect Texas' Urbanization Trend? | Ricardo Lowe interviewed for Reform Austin News
• Calling it the 'Chinese virus' distracts us from readying for the next public health crisis | Op-ed on Austin American-Statesman, San Antonio Express-News, and more, written by Ricardo Lowe and Tracie Lowe
• COVID-19 shows why we need misdemeanor criminal justice reform | Op-ed on The Hill by Annika Olson
• UT Austin staffer tells peers to stay home and break the chain | Annika Olson interviewed on Spectrum News
• CNN Right Now with Brianna Keilar | Annika Olson interviewed on CNN
• An open letter to my peers partying on the beach | Op-ed on CNN by Annika Olson

Resources

Austin

• Travis County COVID-19 Public Dashboard
• Travis County Social Services Brochure
• CommUnityCare Clinics and COVID-19 Testing | A 4/16/20 message from Central Health with information on clinic re-openings and COVID-19 testing
• Central Texas Food Bank
• ConnectATX | Find up-to-date information regarding COVID-19 emergency food
• Age of Central Texas | Find information about and resources for older adults and caretakers during COVID-19
• Digital Empowerment Community of Austin | The Digital Empowerment Community of Austin (DECA) is a network of non-profits, educational instititions, and other stakeholders working together to improve our community's ability to participate in digital society, making a more digitally inclusive Austin.
• Austin Independent School District:
  • Meals During Closures | Information about AISD's meal services and sites during school closures
  • Technical Support for the Austin ISD Community | AISD technical resources and contact information for parents, students, and staff, including information about Chromebook delivery
  • Austin ISD Learning At-Home | AISD's at-home learning website

Texas

• FoodPantries.org | Find food pantries and food banks in Texas, by city.
• COVID-19 in Texas: State and Local Housing Stability Policies | Website tracking policies adopted by the federal government, State of Texas, and local jurisdictions to help Texas residents stay in their homes during the pandemic and accompanying financial crisis.

Business

• SBA Loans | U.S. Small Business Administration 
• F.A.Q. on coronavirus relief for small businesses, freelancers and more | The New York Times

Mental Health

• NAMI HelpLine | National Alliance on Mental Illness 
• Stress and coping during an outbreak | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Data 

• Covid Act Now | The U.S. Intervention Model is a data platform that projects COVID infections, hospitalizations, and deaths across the United States, as well as model how public health interventions contain the spread of COVID.
• Tracking the novel coronavirus in the U.S. | Reuters Graphics
• Here's when the coronavirus will peak in your state | The Hill
• A new Texas COVID-19 pandemic toolkit shows the importance of social distancing | UT News

Relevant Reads

• Defeating COVID-19 also means confronting racism | Austin American-Statesman (UT Austin Faculty)
• We need to talk about privilege and the coronavirus pandemic | YES! (UT Austin Faculty)
• Racial Capitalism: A Funadmental Cause of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Inequities in the United States | Health Education & Behavior [journal article]
• The pandemic may leave communities of color undercounted in the census—and cost them billions | Vox
• Scrutiny of social-distance policing as 35 of 40 arrested are Black | The New York Times
• Hispanic and Black residents make up a disproportionate number of Austin COVID-19 hospitalizations | KXAN 
• The new coronavirus affects us all. But some groups may suffer more. | AAMC
• We asked 30,000 Black Americans what they need to survive. Here's what they said. | Time
• As schools close amid coronavirus concerns, the digital divide leaves some students behind | Time
• Black Texans already face health care disparities. The coronavirus is making it worse. | Texas Tribune
• Out of sight, child abuse in Texas thought to be on the rise | Texas Tribune
• COVID-19 may not discriminate based on race—but U.S. health care does | PBS
• Early data shows African Americans have contracted and died of coronavirus at an alarming rate | ProPublica
• Black Americans face alarming rates of coronavirus infection in some states | The New York Times
• U.S. government is urged to release race, ethnicity data on COVID-19 cases | Washington Post
• When it comes to COVID-19, the 'I-35 divide' determines who's more at risk | Texas Standard