Congratulations to Sustainable Urban Planning (SUP) students Arielle Lofton and Tambo Prince for receiving the National Capital Area Chapter of the American Planning Association Diversity Fellowship (NCAC-APA).
As recipients of the NCAC-APA Fellowships, Ms. Lofton and Mr. Prince will each receive an award in the amount of $1,000, as well as the support of a professional mentor.
This scholarship supports diversity of the profession, with awards going to a first-year and a second-year student who meet BIPOC diversity criteria (black, Indigenous and people of color).
I'm excited to congratulate these two terrific students on their selection by the NCAC chapter for their academic excellence,” Sustainable Urban Planning program director Sandra Whitehead said. “I'm very proud of them both."
Arielle Lofton, a second-year SUP student currently living in Bristow, VA became interested in urban planning through her background in hospitality and culinary arts.
While earning her bachelor’s degree in Applied Food Studies with Culinary Arts at The Culinary Institute of America in New York, she actively worked on and off campus with local organizations focused on sustainable farming and food justice initiatives in the Hudson Valley.
Having a passion for serving local communities, she wanted to learn more about what it takes to make more sustainable, equitable and healthy places for us all to live and enjoy.
While completing her first year at GW, Arielle worked for various local and national organizations gaining experience in supporting wildlife and environmental conservation efforts with GIS, community engagement through helping manage a county-wide community garden program and providing technical assistance and research for projects focused on transportation and land-use development initiatives. She is very passionate and excited to continue learning more about the planning world with the support and guidance from her professors and working professionals in the field.
“I am so grateful and honored to have been chosen for the inaugural National Capital Area Chapter of the APA Diversity Fellowship Award. I'm looking forward to participating in NCAC chapter events and speaking to you about my goals and interests,” she said.
"Although I am a native Washingtonian, I had never been to the Capitol or the House/Senate Office Buildings prior to starting to work as an architect at the Architect of the Capitol (AOC)," wrote Tambo Prince, a first-year SUP student.
He said he developed further interest in planning while working on AOC projects and planning studies for the Capitol Complex, including ideas for improving bike safety and infrastructure.
He further reflected that the Capitol Complex is in its own bubble in comparison to other nearby areas of the city such as Southwest and Capitol Hill, which fascinated him, but also sparked his interest in how complicated and multifaceted a city can be. He has always loved the urban landscape in general, and with the city where he grew up changing at such a rapid pace, he was interested in how he could be a part of this to ensure the culture is not changed or disregarded in the process.
While he already has an undergraduate degree in architecture from Temple University, he decided to pursue the SUP master’s degree to delve deeper into multifaceted aspects of urban cities and their cultures. He is also very interested in housing, especially affordable housing. He is hoping to use his degree to improve the city he grew up in and allow it to remain a viable, affordable living option for other middle-class native residents. He also dreams of working at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in order to influence affordable housing changes at the national level.
- About the National Capital Area Chapter of the American Planning Association Diversity Fellowship (NCAC-APA)
- About the Sustainable Urban Planning master’s degree program