“New York: City Designed” Buillds New Pathways to Urban Planning Careers

New York: City Designed aims to grow the pipeline of students with underrepresented backgrounds in the planning, design, and preservation fields.

Macaulay Honors College and the Design Trust for Public Space have announced a new program aimed at providing students interested in the planning, design, and preservation fields with a hands-on understanding of the forces that have shaped their city—and access to careers in those sectors. The year-long program will include a mixture of experiential learning, workshop-based problem-solving, lectures, site visits, and internship placements equipping young leaders to take power as NYC residents and jump-start their professional development.

New York: City Designed seeks to introduce a wide diversity of student groups to opportunities in the design sectors and have real-world experience to prepare them for these careers. Spearheaded by a steering committee of city agencies, non-profits, and private-sector design and architecture firms, including the New York City Mayor’s Office, New York City Department of Planning, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission, WXY Studio, Times Square Alliance, Grand Central Partnership, 3×3 Design, and more, the program pilot will begin this summer, with many of the organizations hosting students through funded on-site internship placements. The 8-10 week City Design Internship program will also include site visits, lectures, and networking events.

“We are thrilled to partner with Design Trust for Public Space to launch this innovative new program,” said Macaulay Dean Dara N. Byrne, PhD. “Our students care deeply about the city’s communities and often express that passion for social change in their academic work. New York: City Designed will provide avenues for smart, creative, Macaulay students to take that passion to new areas of professional development and add their voices to areas of planning, design, and preservation.”

“Young people, people of color, and others with underrepresented backgrounds have been historically excluded from city-making conversations that impact their communities the most,” said Matthew Clarke, Design Trust for Public Space Executive Director. “Building on Design Trust’s experience in seeding agency to new forms of leadership, we are proud to partner with Macaulay’s exceptional student body and cultivate their unique perspectives, empowering a new generation’s ability to spearhead solutions to complex design challenges facing our global city.”