Cornwall Centers 2008 Urban Lecture Series Examines Gentrification, Public Land Use

(Newark, NJ-January 16, 2008) -- The Joseph C. Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies at Rutgers University in Newark, and the Rutgers-Newark academic community, have a common goal: sharing urban policy research to effect change on a local level. It is also the focus of the Centers Urban Research Lecture Series that begins its second semester this month.

The lectures bring nationally recognized urban scholars to the Newark campus to discuss their research with the R-N community. Speakers are chosen based on the interdisciplinary nature of their research and its importance to Newark and other cities. This year, speakers from CUNYs Graduate Center and Princeton University will address two issues of vital urban significance: gentrification and public land use. A third speaker will examine issues related to equitable funding for New Jersey schools.

The beauty of the Cornwall Institute is the opportunity it gives researchers for collaboration, says Center director Dr. Stephanie Bush-Baskette. Often scholars can get isolated in their own disciplines, but the Centers programs can bring together faculty from different schools/departments, such as Political Science and Criminal Justice, whose work may overlap in mutually beneficial ways.

The Centers mission is to study the challenges facing metropolitan regions, in order to inform the public about new initiatives to tackle those challenges. Toward that end, it also supports urban revitalization through community outreach programs. The Center sponsors several programs for faculty to share their research and brainstorm, including luncheon seminars, conferences, and panel discussions. For more information on the Cornwall Center and its programs, visit its website: http://www.cornwall.rutgers.edu/index.htm

The 2008 Urban Research Lecture Series is as follows:

The Best as Enemy of the Good: The Port Authoritys Flawed Search for a 4th Jetport, presented by Jameson W. Doig, Senior Scholar and Professor Emeritus of Politics and International Affairs, Princeton University, on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008, 2:30 p.m. 4 p.m.

Gentrification as Catch 22, presented by Dr. Neil Smith of the Ph.D. Program in Anthropology at the City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate Center, on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2008, 2:30 p.m. 4 p.m.

Getting School Funding Right (and Wrong): Reflections on the Abbott Case, presented by Deborah Yaffe, journalist and author of Other Peoples Children: The Battle for Justice and Equality in New Jerseys Schools (Rutgers University Press, 2007), on Wednesday March 12, 2008, 2:30 p.m. 4 p.m.

All lectures are held in the Dana Room of the Dana Library, 185 University Ave., Newark. Please check the Cornwall Center events webpage for updates: lectures

Lectures are free and open to R-N students, faculty and staff, as well as the general public. Due to limited seating, please RSVP by contacting Ms. Irene Welch at irenew@rutgers.edu or (973) 353-1750, ext. 221, by the Friday prior to each lecture.