Sowmya Balachandran, Ph.D.

I study poverty, poverty risk, and economic mobility in transnational geographies. My sub-field of specialization is housing and community development. Within the domain of housing, I focus on evaluating access to credit, housing, and mortgage markets and the role of State assistance in affordable housing production.  Within community development, my work makes visible power structures, foregrounds the planning practices of marginalized communities, and innovates methods and theory for realizing social justice. In my scholarship, I often engage in mixed methods research combining qualitative ethnographic studies with quantitative spatial and statistical analyses.

Brian Collins, Ph.D.

Lauren Ames Fischer, Ph.D.

I examine the governance of urban transport and land use with a particular focus on decision-making processes, policies and implementation tools impact low income and minority neighborhoods. I utilize qualitative, quantitative and spatial analysis methods to produce policy-relevant research aimed at facilitating more equitable and sustainable urban environments.

Specific Research Areas:

Urban Planning
Transportation and Land Use
Infrastructure Finance and Management
Social Equity
Sustainability and Resilience

Hee Soun Jang, Ph.D.

Nonprofit organizations engaging in public service as service providers; advocacy and resource development; local government policies and management of services; services for the homeless; network governance

Skip Krueger, Ph.D.

Financial aspects of natural disasters, state and local budgeting, urban political economy

Kelly Shi, Ph.D.

Financial management of state and local governments; fiscal policies, fiscal federalism, intergovernmental management, collective actions, financial aspect of emergency management, urban and local governance, smart cities and civic engagement