Deana Rhodeside, Ph.D.

Director - Planner - Community Engagement Specialist

For the past four decades, Deana has been interested in the creation of plans that strengthen our cities and their communities, and encourage places of personal satisfaction and collective well-being. Through her experience in both community planning and urban design, she has directed many broad-based initiatives focused on creating “sense of place” in ways that reflect the culture, history, socio-economic challenges and desires within each community. She is adept in designing an engagement strategy for each project – whether a corridor, a neighborhood, a downtown, or a public space — that uniquely responds to the issues inherent in that particular task.

Working in major metropolitan areas, including urban centers such as Washington, DC, the Atlanta region, Boston, New York and London, Deana’s work has ranged from master planning and environmental analyses, to community resilience, sustainability and visioning. Her experience in creating inspired and engaging urban settings has included many projects in aging communities, along major transportation corridors, and on historic and environmentally sensitive properties.  Her work is based on the belief that an educated public – one that is aware of the interrelated consequences of design decisions – is one that is able to make responsible and enduring decisions about its future.

Plays the piano for pleasure and a challenge.