Students named NITC Scholars for 2021 and 2022

Six Urban Studies students named NITC Scholars in 2021 - 2022

The NITC Scholars program recognizes outstanding students working on transportation projects. Six of the ten students recognized in 2021-2022 are Urban Studies students. These programs develop the workforce by directing talented students toward research and practice, increasing the number and quality of graduates in transportation. Faculty committees at each of NITC's partner universities nominate students for the program. 

Kelly Rodgers

Urban Studies student named NITC Student of the Year in 2021

PhD student Kelly Rodgers was named the NITC Student of the Year in 2021. Kelly, who studies the use and influence of health indicators in transportation plans, has been awarded the Dwight D. Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship three times and twice named a NITC Student Scholar. Kelly is also the Executive Director of Streetsmart, a non-profit research synthesis and resource clearinghouse for integrating health, climate, and equity into transportation. Kelly is the vice-chair of the Institute of Transportation Engineers' Health and Transportation Standing Committee, a member of the Transportation Research Board's Transportation and Public Health Committee, and an advisory board member of the American Public Health Association's Center for Climate, Health, and Equity.

Two Urban Studies faculty earned PSU research awards in 2021

Jennifer Dill

The 2021 Presidential Career Research Award recipient is Jennifer Dill. Dill is a professor in the Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning and Director of the Transportation Research & Education Center at PSU. TREC houses the National Institute for Transportation and Communities, a national university transportation center funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Professor Dill is an internationally known scholar researching the relationships between transportation, land use, health and the environment, focusing on active transportation. Before entering academia, Professor Dill worked as an environmental and transportation planner in California. That experience motivates her teaching and research, which aims to inform practice and policy. She has published extensively in peer-review journals and has served as principal investigator or co-PI on over $4.3M in research projects and over $28M in federal center funding. Her research has been covered by Wired, Governing, USA Today, the PBS News Hour, Here and Now, Marketplace and the Atlantic.

 

Julius Alexander McGee

The 2021 Early Career Research Award recipient is Julius Alexander McGee. McGee is an assistant professor in the Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning and Black Studies and one recipient of the 2021 Early Career Research Award. His scholarship focuses on the relationship between social inequality and climate change. He has also published on topics related to organic farming, renewable energy, global urban development, and transportation. His most recent work explores how mass incarceration contributes to climate change.

Researchers

Urban Studies Faculty lead or support five PSU Research Centers