October 16, 2006

October CUPPA Briefing

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Pagano Elected Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration
The National Academy of Public Administration is an independent, non-partisan, nonprofit organization chartered by the US Congress to assist all levels of government in improving their effectiveness, efficiency, and accountability. Based upon his scholarly contributions to public administration, significant administrative and field experience, concern for the advancement of the field, and high ethical standards, Michael A. Pagano, Professor and Director of the Public Administration Program, has been
elected as a fellow of the Academy. Our congratulations to Prof. Pagano for this distinguished achievement!

Ashton receives ACSP Barclay Gibbs Jones Award
This Associate of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP) award, which is presented to a single doctoral degree recipient annually, recognizes superior scholarship in a doctoral dissertation completed by a student enrolled in an ACSP-member school. UPP Assistant Professor Phil Ashton has been announced the 2006 award recipient for his dissertation "Advantage or Disadvantage: The Changing Institutional Landscape of Central City Mortgage Markets," which examines whether changes in the financial system over the last fifteen years have increased access to credit for "historically underserved markets" - low-income and minority households and the neighborhoods where they are concentrated. Congratulations to Phil on this honor.

Werner New Director for the CUPPA undergraduate degree
Assistant to the Director of UPP Valerie Werner has been chosen from a highly competitive pool of candidates from across the country to be the first director of CUPPA's new BA in Urban and Public Affairs program, which will offer courses beginning in Fall 2007. Valerie is ABD in the PhD degree
program in Public Administration researching the political and managerial theories of Mary Parker Follett, and brings with her fifteen years of experience working in health and human services as a counselor and administrator in government and non-profit organizations.

Celebrate CUPPA urban scholarship
Where Are Poor People to Live? Transforming Public Housing Communities New book edited by: Larry Bennett, DePaul University; Janet Smith, University of Illinois at Chicago; Patricia Wright, University of Illinois at Chicago. M.E. Sharpe, 2006.

Upcoming book release event will include discussions with editors Janet Smith and Pat Wright of the Voorhees Center, as well as a critical analysis of public housing in Chicago

Friday, October 13, 3:00-6:00 p.m. with refreshments
UIC Student Center East, 750 S. Halsted Cardinal Room, 3rd Floor
Please call Esteleta Cameron at 312-996-6336 or email cameron@uic.edu for
more information and to RSVP.

Good reading
On the GCI webpage under Working Papers: Regionalizing the Global-Local Economic Nexus: A Tale of Two Regions in China by former GCI faculty Scholar Xiangming Chen http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/gci/

On the Great Cities Chicago Politics page: The New Chicago School Not New York or LA and Why it Matters for Urban Social Science, by Terry N. Clark of the University of Chicago http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/gci/programs/chicagopolitics.htm

University of Illinois Global Campus Initiative
Dean Robin Hambleton, Associate Dean Albert Schorsch, GCI Director David Perry and Prof. James Thompson attended U of I President White's 10/10/06 presentation on the University of Illinois Global Campus Initiative -- http://www.vpaa.uillinois.edu/.

CUPPA is investigating strategies that could bring additional resources to CUPPA units by participating in the Global Campus, and is also pursuing "blended learning" funding options for our new BA program in Urban and Public Affairs. Please look over the Global Campus web pages for creative possibilities.

Tour on the CTA celebrates George Krambles Scholarship
Organized by Joe DiJohn and colleagues in the Urban Transportation Center (UTC) a chartered CTA train, driven by our own Professor Mike Shiffer at some points along the way, took a gathering of urbanists and transport enthusiasts on a day-long tour of the CTA network on Saturday September 30.
The 2006 George Krambles Scholarship was awarded, by UTC Director Vonu Thakuriah, to Yongping Zhang, a PhD student in UTC, on the platform of the CTA station at 54th and Cermak. The tour was well attended and very enjoyable. It raised several thousand dollars for the George Krambles Scholarship fund which supports outstanding transportation students in the College.

UTC participates in 11th Conference on International Association of Travel Behavior Research
UTC Director Vonu Thankuriah presented an examination of the simultaneous relationship between transportation expenditures and household incomes at the conference, held in Kyoto, Japan from August 16 to 20. Civil Engineering PhD candidate and UTC research assistant Sadayuki Yagi presented on his thesis, An Activity-based Microsimulation Model of Travel Demand: Applications to Air Quality and Policy Anaylsis, which he recently defended on August 29.

CUPPA Alumni Association Happenings
On September 17, CUPPA alums, faculty and staff gathered at the Garfield Park Conservatory to picnic, hear a presentation on recent developments in the Park, and explore the conservatory and marketplace. This was one of many events put on by the CUPPA Alumni Association Board. All are welcome to join them on December 6 as they host their annual holiday party. Details to come!

MUPP Grad Digitizes Trees
In summer 2006 recent UPP graduate Mike Zabel was contracted by the Village of Wilmette to calculate the Villages tree canopy coverage in order to aid future planning decisions regarding canopy preservation. Supported by GCUDV GIS Coordinator Nina Savar, Zabel digitized tree crowns using ArcGIS and orthophotography. He presented Wilmette trustees with the results of his work on September 12, including a map that represented differential distribution of canopy coverage throughout the Village.

Upcoming Evacuation Drill
CUPPA Hall and Art and Design Hall will be conducting a joint evacuation drill in mid October. Faculty, staff and students will receive an informational email with updated instructions on what to do during a drill and in case of a real emergency. Current instructions can be found at: http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/admin/howto/cuppasecure.html .

Renovated Websites
CUPPA How To
http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/admin/howto/

CUPPA Research Assistant FAQ *Recently Renovated*
http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/admin/students/CUPPAraFAQ.html

COMINGS AND GOINGS:

Congratulations to Professors Kazuya Kawamura and Nik Theodore, who were promoted at the beginning of Academic 2006-7 to the ranks of Associate Professor, UPP, with indefinite tenure.

Welcome to Branco Ponomariov who joined Public Administration as the program's first Post-Doctoral. Branco, who completed his PhD at Georgia Tech this summer, joined CUPPA in August and is working on science and technology-related projects.

And welcome to Richard Kordesh who also joined CUPPA this summer. Richard, who is Visiting Senior Planner in Residence, strengthens the teaching capacity of our Urban Planning and Policy Program.

Angela Seeley has been named Assistant to Associate Dean, CUPPA.

SAVE THE DATE:

November 23-24: Thanksgiving Holiday - Campus Closed
December 6: CUPPA Alumni Holiday Party
December 11-15: Fall Semester Final Exam Week
December 25-29: CUPPA administrative offices and CUPPATech services closed

WORTH REPEATING:

Podcasts on CUPPA Website
Check out the CUPPA website Podcast link at http://www.uic.edu/cuppa. You can download various recorded college events in .mp3 format.

If your unit has an important talk you want podcast so more can hear it, please make plans in advance! Instructions can be found at http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/admin/howto/podcasting.htm.

CUPPABriefing is an electronic publication by the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs for faculty, staff, students, and alumni. Published and distributed via email monthly following the meeting of the CUPPA Cabinet, CUPPABriefing will contain announcements, updates, and facts that are important to those working and/or studying in CUPPA.

Assistant Dean for Communications, Jodi White Jones, will be on leave until January 2, 2006. In her absence, questions, comments, or announcements may be sent to Angela Seeley, the Assistant to the Associate Dean, at angelas@uic.edu or 312-413-5445.