I’m a city strategist, educator, and entrepreneur focused on building stronger economies, institutions, and places.
I’m the co-founder and partner of CivicSol, a public strategy firm that helps cities and regions make the consequential choices that shape how they grow, compete, and invest. For more than two decades, I’ve advised over 125 cities, regions, and public agencies, along with universities, nonprofits, developers, and companies. My work spans economic development, urban strategy, organizational change, and community engagement, grounded in a simple belief: lasting progress is built with communities, not to them.
I’m also a Professor of Practice at Northeastern University’s School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs, where I teach and mentor students in urban policy, economic development, and public-sector consulting. I write and speak regularly about the future of cities, place-based economic development, and the civic institutions that help communities thrive.
Before joining Northeastern, I served as Assistant Dean for Faculty of Practice and Policy Engagement and Professor of Practice at the University of Texas at Austin’s LBJ School of Public Affairs. While at UT, I founded and directed the LBJ Urban Lab, a platform connecting university expertise with the challenges facing cities and communities across Texas and beyond. Earlier in my career, I founded a similar urban research and engagement center at New York University.
I serve on the Board of Directors of the Texas Lyceum. I hold a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin and graduate degrees from Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
I split my time between Boston and the Berkshires with my dashing husband, Brian, our Boston Terrier, Cornelius-Jack, and our black pug, Haze. And yes, both dogs’ names are Taylor Swift-inspired.
