Dr. Amanda Johnson is an Assistant Professor in the Community and Regional Planning
program in the Department of Public Policy & Administration. She received a PhD in
City and Regional Planning in the School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania, a
Master of Urban and Regional Planning from the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public
Affairs at the University of Minnesota, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political of Science
and International Studies from the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences at Northwestern
University. Her areas of expertise include planning history, economic development,
community development, urban revitalization, and public health. 

Johnson's current research studies the economic and community development aspect of
urban sustainability. Specifically, she studies redevelopment and revitalization through
the lens of arts economic development. Her dissertation, "Developing Urban Arts
Districts: Analyzing Mobilization in Dallas, Denver, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and
Seattle” explores arts anchored redevelopment districts over sixty years and answers
whether such interventions are viable policy. As a secondary research emphasis, Johnson
also looks at the evidence-based nexus between public health and planning. She has
presented work at the American Collegiate Schools of Planning, Urban History, and Society
for American City and Planning History conferences. In addition to authoring policy
reports for the Penn Institute of Urban Research and Penn Praxis, she has co-authored two
publications, including Crossover: How Artists Build Careers across Commercial,
Nonprofit, and Community Work, and Artists' Centers: Evolution and Impact on
Careers, Neighborhoods and Economies.

Articles

Link

Testing Three Health Impact Assessment Tools in Planning: A Process Evaluation (with Carissa Schively Slotterback, Ann Forsyth, Kevin J. Krizek, and Aly Pennucci), Environmental Impact Assessment Review (2011)

There is increasing interest in Health Impact Assessment in planning. This paper describes the results...

 

Books and Monographs

Link

Crossover: How Artists Build Careers Across Commercial, Nonprofit, and Community Work (with Ann Markusen, Sam Gilmore, Titus Levi, and Andrea Martinez) (2006)

For decades, the art world and the general public have viewed artists and arts activity...

 

Link

Artists’ Centers: Evolution and Impact on Careers, Neighborhoods and Economies (with Ann Markusen) (2006)

When we published The Artistic Dividend: The Arts’ Hidden Contributions to Regional Development in 2003,...

 

Conference Papers & Presentations

Invited Speaker: The Arts as a Community Revitalization Strategy, National Symposium on Arts/Cultural/Entertainment Districts (2012)

The designation of arts, cultural, and entertainment districts has been employed as a community economic...

 

Guest Lecture: The City and the Arts, City and Regional Planning: Introduction to Economic Development, University of Pennsylvania (2010)
 

The History of Local Government Action in Arts-Anchored Redevelopment Districts, Urban History Association Conference (2010)
 

Transforming Arts-Anchored Redevelopment Districts: Contemporary Strategies, Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning Annual Conference (2010)
 

Invited Guest Lecture: 'Arts Districts and Urban Redevelopment', Art, Artists and the City: Making Urban Redevelopment Work for Central Baltimore (2010)
 

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