Professional Experience
Business Director/Graphic Designer
Classical Kids Music Education | Chicago, IL | Jan. '08 - present
- Secured 501(c)(3) non-profit status within 7 months for a nationally acclaimed music education/arts organization.
- Designed, developed, and maintained two extensive, CSS-based websites (classicalkidslive.com and ckme.org).
- Completed over 20 grant proposals and have secured $22,500 in grants, as well as two individual giving campaigns.
- Enhanced the organization's reputation by developing email and postcard marketing campaigns, newsletters, brochures, magazine advertisements and branding.
- Administered the organization's business operations, financial filings, and tour coordination with over 50 orchestral organizations.
Associate
The Lakota Group | Chicago, IL | Jan. '07 - Jan. '08
- Involved in all planning project phases, including site analyses; zoning code and ordinance analyses; graphic and exhibit creation; development of conceptual, master, and illustrative plans; implementation strategies; and written reports.
- Developed a wide range of plans and reports, including comprehensive, downtown, area, master and neighborhoods plans, as well as form-based code.
- Facilitated public participation at planning meetings by leading table discussions.
- Enhanced the marketability of the firm through the creation of proposal submissions, powerpoints, and project sheets/booklets. Representative projects include: Glenview (IL) Downtown Development Code; Route 120 Corridor Plan, Lake County, IL; Mattawan (MI) Comprehensive Plan; Central Street Master Plan, Evanston, IL; East Chicago (IN) Comprehensive Plan; and Gary (IN) Comprehensive Plan.
Planning Intern
The Lakota Group | Chicago, IL | Apr '06 - Jan. '07
- Assisted in the completion of several comprehensive and downtown master plans.
- Researched a wide range of implementation strategies.
- Conducted site and zoning code analyses.
- Collaborated on proposal submissions and powerpoints.
GIS Intern
Great Cities Data Visualization Lab | Chicago, IL | Feb. '06 - Mar. '06
- Assisted in several research projects at a UIC research center specializing in mapping and geospatial data analysis.
- Provided post-graduate level teaching assistance on ArcGIS.
Education
Master's of Urban Planning & Policy
University of Illinois at Chicago | Chicago, IL
Concentration: Physical Planning. Masters Project: Brisbane (New Lenox, IL) Transit-Oriented Master Plan.
Postgraduate Coursework in Urban Planning and Design
University of Melbourne | Melbourne, Australia
Studied transit planning, housing strategies and planning law in Australia's public transit capital.
Bachelors of Arts (Hons.) Geography
University of Otago | Dunedin, New Zealand
Dissertation, Economic Development Strategies in Varsity Towns: A Comparative Examination of the Local Economic Development Situations in Ann Arbor, Michigan and Dunedin, New Zealand.
Software/Digital Skills
