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Bloustein School Jumps to #4 in New Ranking of Nation's Best Graduate Schools in Urban Planning
In an independent survey of planning professors and practitioners, current students and recent graduates, the Bloustein School placed Rutgers among the nation’s elite universities for planning and public policy. The survey was undertaken by Planetizen, a Los Angeles-based planning and development network. In Planetizen's first survey, conducted in 2006, the Bloustein School was rated 8th nationally. Click here for the release.
May 2008
Jerome Rose Teaching and Excellence in Service Awards Presented for Outstanding Achievements
The Bloustein School has presented 2008 awards for outstanding achievement to members of its faculty and staff. The 2008 Jerome Rose Teaching Excellence awards received 11 nominations and were presented to Assistant Professor Kathe Newman (Faculty), PhD Candidate Alan Cander (Teaching Assistant), and Peter Tabbot (Part-time Lecturer.) Newman was honored for teaching all of her students, whether first year undergraduates or PhD students, "with equal enthusiasm and inspiration." Cander was honored for taking on difficult assignments, such as teaching Professor Rose's Survey of Planning Law Principles, a particularly challenging course given the lack of legal background of most planning students. Tabott, a public health service officer, has taught at the Bloustein School for six years, receiving "stellar course evaluations" from his students.
Peter Tabbot, Jerome Rose, Kathe Newman, and Alan Cander
During a meeting of the Bloustein School Congress, Excellence in Service awards for the school staff were presented to:
Linda Guardabascio, Director of Business Services (Management and Supervisory)
Vice President Philip Furmanski, Arlene Pashman, Rich Bochkay, Nicole DelBuono, Tamara Swedberg, Linda Guardabascio, and Dean James W. Hughes
April 2008 Senior Fellow Martin Robins and Graduate Students Win Awards
The New Jersey Planning Officials presented 2008 Achievement in Planning
Awards Martin E. Robins, senior fellow with the Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center, and the students in a graduate planning studio who helped Lindenwold create a borough vision plan. Robins was honored for his 35-year career in transportation planning and policy, including his service at the Bloustein School which began in 1998 when he founded the Voorhees Transportation Planning Institute. Robins has managed several of New Jersey's largest transit initiatives, directing projects to construct new trans-Hudson passenger rail tunnels and the Hudson Bergen Light Rail Line.
The Graduate Planning Studio created strategies and recommendations for Lindenwold to redevelop around its PATCO station area and its Gibbsboro Road apartment corridor. The planning focused on neighborhood revitalization, increasing connectivity, creating a borough gateway and building a community center. The participating students were: Amit Arora, Matthew Ellis, Afton Enger, Chris Kesici, Andrew Koziol, Charu Kukreja, Edward Leimbach, Liu Liu, Nancy Mahadeo, Rebecca Marshall, Kate Meade, Carrie McCarthy, Carrine Piccolo, Amy Sampson, Megan Saunders, Lianna Schafer, Heidi Schallberg, Katie Thielman and Ning Wang.
February 2008
Robert Curvin Joins EJB as Distinguished Senior Policy Fellow
A world-renowned expert on urban politics, economic development and social policy, Dr. Robert Curvin joined the Bloustein School in February as a Distinguished Senior Policy Fellow. He will present major lectures and take part in regularly scheduled graduate and undergraduate courses and seminars, sharing his vast experience and knowledge on public policy issues and concerns, especially in urban issues, issues of quality and equity, and philanthropy.
His first public lectures were part of a series of events this year at the Bloustein School reflecting back upon the 1967 Newark Disturbances and the resulting Governor’s Select Commission on Civil Disorders, better known as the Lilley Commission. As a Newark community activist at the time, Dr. Curvin worked to restore calm and became a forceful witness for the city's minority population before the Lilley Commission. He was a key organizer in fashioning the coalition that successfully campaigned for the election of Kenneth Gibson, the first African American mayor of Newark. He went on to join the Editorial Board of The New York Times.
Dr. Curvin graduated from Rutgers and received his MSW from the University's Graduate School of Social Work. He received his Ph.D. in politics from Princeton University. Dr. Curvin was most recently president of the Greentree Foundation; director of the Ford Foundation's Urban Poverty Program; dean of the Graduate School of Management and Urban Professions, at the New School for Social Research; associate professor of political science at Brooklyn College; community development specialist at Rutgers University; director of the Rutgers Community Action Training Program; director of the Harlem Leadership Training Institute; and a caseworker and supervisor for the Essex County Welfare Board.
In addition, he currently serves as board chair of the Fund for the City of New York, and is a member of the board of the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute. He has previously served on the boards of Channel 13, Princeton University, the RAND Corporation, the NJ Performing Arts Center, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, and Broad National Bank. Prior to attending college, he served as an officer in the 101st Airborne Artillery. He is married to Patricia Hall Curvin, a retired high school English teacher. They have two children and two grandchildren.
February 2008
Meck Takes Part in Princeton Symposium Marking Mt. Laurel Decision
Faculty Fellow Stuart Meck took part in a symposium at Princeton University marking the 25th anniversary of the New Jersey Supreme Court's Mt. Laurel ruling regarding municipal obligations to provide affordable housing. In addition, the Journal of Planning History published a paper Meck co-authored with Auburn University Assistant Professor Rebecca Retzlaff regarding a landmark New York state court decision that helped launch smart growth policy.
January 2008
Brownfields Center Welcomes Dr. Judy Shaw
Dr. Judy Shaw has joined the National Center for Brownfield and Neighborhood Redevelopment lead its program to develop sustainable neighborhood revitalization and encourage the innovative reuse of brownfields. Dr. Shaw worked previously with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Community Affairs, and is a certified member of the American Institute of Certified Planners and a licensed Professional Planner in New Jersey.
December 2007
Cliff Zukin Cliff Zukin Named Director of Public Policy
Professor Cliff Zukin in January became Director of the Public Policy Program. Dr. Zukin recently joined the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development and assisted NBC with exit poll analysis during the Super Tuesday presidential nominating primaries. He is the immediate past President of the American Association for Public Opinion Research.
November 2007
Chronicle of Higher Education Ranks Bloustein Faculty 7th in Nation
In its 2007 index of 375 universities, the Chronicle of Higher Education ranks the Urban and Regional Planning faculty at Rutgers 7th nationally for scholarly productivity. The ranking accounts for book and journal publications, citations, and grant awards. To learn more, click here
A world-renowned expert on urban politics, economic development and social policy, Dr. Robert Curvin joined the Bloustein School in February as a Distinguished Senior Policy Fellow. He will present major lectures and take part in regularly scheduled graduate and undergraduate courses and seminars, sharing his vast experience and knowledge on public policy issues and concerns, especially in urban issues, issues of quality and equity, and philanthropy.