Program Review Discussion

Unit Defined Core Questions 1) What progress has the Program made toward each one of these objectives? 1. Reach national prominence (top 3 US Ph.D. planning programs). 2. Align the curriculum and structure with the program’s intellectual focus. [We did this] 3. Create and support quality mentorship and advising. 4. Develop an effective, accountable, and transparent governance structure. 5. Generate and sustain necessary resources for the long-term viability of the program.

State of the Program Resources We are a strong program but our resources are primarily external. In 2013 our faculty were PI’s in over $42 M in funding from diverse agencies of externally funded research projects. 22% of the total program’s resources come from the Graduate School, and about 18% were from UDP and contributing departments. We need to triplicate our resources to be able to recruit our top applicants and support our students and faculty productive research.

Current Trajectory

Applications

Composition of the faculty group 11 Dept. 15 Dept.

Faculty  48 faculty in the Interdisciplinary Group from 15 departments;  From 2010—Spring 2013 the interdisciplinary faculty group of this program published over 410 peer reviewed articles, with 35 more in press, forthcoming; 17 books, 6 forthcoming; and 67 book chapters, 20 forthcoming.

Students  Current students in the last 3 years have published 13 peer reviewed papers, 8 reports and or conference proceedings, 1 book review, and 1 book chapter.  Current students in the last 3 years have presented at national and international conferences 52 times.  Current students in the last 3 years have received 20 awards, including the Bullitt Environmental Fellowship ($100,000), the Lincoln Land Institute Doctoral Fellowship, the Palestinian American Research Center Fellowship, Open Society/SOROS Foundation Fellowship, Huckabay Teaching Fellowships.

UDP Geography ESS CSS Public Affairs Forest Resources CEE Epidemiology Landscape Architecture Environmental Health Statistics Anthropology Architecture Ocean & Fish Sciences Program Interdisciplinarity Pediatrics

Graduates All of the graduates of the program continue to “be leaders in the international community of researchers, educators, and practitioners who focus on improving the quality of life and environment in metropolitan regions,” per our mission statement.  Graduates in the last four years occupy academic positions in North America at the University of Pennsylvania; SUNY Buffalo; and University of Vermont, Portland State University, and University of Washington.  Internationally, our graduates hold positions at Birzeit University, Palestine; Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden; Yonsei University, Seoul National University, Korea; University of Glasgow, Scotland, and other universities in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Korea, and Thailand.

Creating Our Future: Aligning the program with our renewed identity

Review Questions What challenges and opportunities do the current structural and financial changes at UW pose to fully achieve these objectives? What challenges and opportunities do the emerging changes in national and international trends in urban design and planning and doctoral education pose to achieve these objectives? What can we learn from other institutions and PhD programs to address the challenges and make further progress towards these objectives?

Mapping our Future Define a blueprint for realigning the program to our renewed identity Identify synergies and tradeoffs in realigning course requirements (e.g., research methods) Develop a guide map for orienting students through the program

Responding to the Challenge Our Identity: New Clusters  Urban Development Processes  Urban Ecology and Wellbeing  Urban Environment and Transportation Pedagogy Revised Curriculum to align with emerging challenges and new clusters Provide a road map to help students navigate through program requirements and clusters

Emerging Definitions (1) Urban Ecology and Wellbeing (2) Urban Environment and Transportation (3) Urban Development Processes

Program Clusters

Urban design & planning9 Geography5 Forest Resources3 Landscape architecture3 Public affairs3 CEE2 CSE2 Anthropology1 Statistics1 Epidemiology1 ESS & CEE1 Oceanography & Fish Sciences1 Pediatrics1

Curriculum Review 1.Added curriculum requirement descriptions to better explain core requirements and research methods 2.Added more qualitative courses to both phase 1 and phase 2 research methods requirements. 3.More appropriately placed some of the quantitative methods courses in phase 1 or phase 2, depending on level of difficulty.

Road Map: Example of PhD Curriculum

State of the Program: A Synthesis With the world becoming increasingly urban our field of knowledge and practice is becoming increasingly central to both academia and society.  We are continuing to make important progress in making our program visible through our graduates, numerous publications, and participation in conferences.  It is now critical that we strengthen our capacity to perform a leading role in bringing together diverse disciplines, integrate many points of observations, and linking research and practice.

The Future of the Program Acknowledge the centrality of urban challenge and its role beyond our field Build on synergies with the UW faculty to generate new opportunities for scholarship and education Partner with other programs/colleges to generate greater efficiencies

An Urban PhD Cluster Create a cluster of independent PhD Programs in different Colleges who have a focus on urban issues Develop a set of shared courses, seminars, and resources to support students and faculty in these programs focusing on urban scholarship Create open forums for exchange and cross-fertilization in urban studies

Annual Symposium The Study of Cities in the Anthropocene Objective: explore the challenges and opportunities that a new centrality of "urban problems" pose to the study of cities. Speakers from diverse disciplines will articulate a new definition of "urban" and identify existing and potential intellectual synergies among scholars of urban studies.

Annual Symposium The Study of Cities in the Anthropocene The symposium will be structured in three sessions and five panels. A first session will define planetary-scale socio- ecological change and elaborate the challenges and opportunities for the study of the city. A second session, three panels will explore the implications of such new definition for three research areas: 1) urban development processes, 2) urban ecology and wellbeing, and 3) transportation and the environment. A third session will explore the implications for graduate education and opportunities for innovation in PhD Education.