Jackson State University’s Department of Urban and Regional Planning has been re-accredited by the Planning Accreditation Board (PAB) for a four-year term, 2014-2018.
“Our faculty’s reputation with scholarly publications, community interaction, competitive curriculum, and broad-based involvement of our students within the planning field” were noted as viable assets by the PAB, said Dr. Mukesh Kumar, interim chair of the department in the College of Public Service.
“Having the re-accrediting status shows that we have a credible and sustainable program which deserves recognition,” he said.
The department seeks to continue making an impact in the city of Jackson’s planning community that will be boosted by the expected move to a new location at the 101 Capitol Building in downtown Jackson, he said.
The department was created in 1998, and funded as part of the Ayers higher education desegregation lawsuit settlement. The settlement was part of a multi-decade lawsuit named after the principal plaintiff, Jake Ayers, challenging adequate funding and program offerings at Mississippi’s public historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
The PAB is jointly sponsored by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning, which is the organization for planning professors, the American Planning Association, known as the organization for professional planners, and its professional institute, the American Institute of Certified Planners. Its mission is to ensure high quality education for future urban planners.