SCALE is part of the Figueroa Corridor Coalition For Economic Justice (FCCEJ). FCCEJ is a network of community organizations that works around gentrification, affordable housing, etc issues in the USC community. Ever since USC announced that they were planning on making USC a "residential university" and to expand housing out into the nearby community, local residents became worried not just about how far out student housing would go, but also all the amenities that would be demanded along with it (GAP, starbucks, Movie theatre, etc) and how that would raise housing costs. To best serve community interests, FCCEJ demanded that USC set up a working committee to deal with these issues.