Monthly Archives: October 2011

Housing Policy Debate Special Issue on the Environment and Equity Issues in Housing Policy

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Housing Policy Debate, the premier journal of housing policy research, has published a special issue on housing inequality, brought together by guest editors Fritz Steiner and Elizabeth Mueller of the University of Texas – Austin. Articles in the special issue explore the relationships between transportation infrastructure and home prices in NYC, green and affordable housing in Cleveland, and sustainable and equitable housing in Chicago

The editorial team of Housing Policy Debate is pleased to report that the 2010 Impact Factor for the journal has risen to 1.708. The current ranking of the journal is 6th out of 47 among Planning and Development journals and 4th out 36 among Urban Studies journals. Housing Policy Debate is edited by Tom Sanchez and is housed within the Metropolitan Institute at Virginia Tech.


Faculty Fellow Showcase: Ralph Buehler

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Professor Ralph Buehler, assistant professor in the Urban Affairs and Planning department in the School of Public and International Affairs and Faculty Fellow to the Metropolitan Institute, shared some of his background and research highlights recently.

Professor Buehler can often be found exploring the Alexandria, VA, area by bicycle.

Q: Please tell us a bit about your academic background.

I am from Germany originally, where I studied Public Policy and Management at the University of Konstanz.  While getting my degree in Konstanz, I had the opportunity to live in London (UK), Paris (France) where I was an exchange student at the Sorbonne University, and in Germany’s capital Berlin. Moreover, in 2001/2002, I was an exchange student at Rutgers University, where I received a Masters degree in City and Regional Studies. In 2002, I returned to Germany to finish my Masters degree in Public Policy and Management. In fall 2003, I began my doctoral studies at the Bloustein School at Rutgers University. I finished my PhD in 2008 and my dissertation won the award for best dissertation by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning in 2008.

Q: What are your main research projects at the present time?

At this time, there are several research projects. One project focuses on the determinants of bicycling the Washington DC area. We use data from the regional travel survey and analyze cycling trends and policies in the District of Columbia, Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax County, Montgomery County, and Prince George’s County. There are two parts to this study. First we develop case studies for each jurisdiction looking at trends in cycling levels and policies. Second, we use multiple regression analysis to identify determinants of cycling and bike commuting. The model on bike commuting includes interesting variables about facilities at work, such as showers, lockers, or changing rooms. Additionally, my research assistant added the regional bike infrastructure network to the data. Thus, we can analyze if people living within ¼ mile of a bike lane are more likely to cycle.

For another project we have two great data sets to compare transit riders in Germany and the USA. Continue reading →

New Research: Tracking Progress of Large-Scale Public Sector Projects

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Director Kevin Desouza employs sentiment analysis for tracking the progress of large-scale public sector projects from public documents

Kevin Desouza has co-authored a paper with Sandeep Purao and Jonathan Becker, both based at the College of Information Science and Technology at Penn State University, which analyzes the using sentiment analysis. The paper titled “Investigating Failures In Large-Scale Public Sector Projects With Sentiment Analysis” will appear in a special issue of e-Service Journal.

The research aims to determine early indicators of when large-scale public sector projects begin to go off the rails. Using historical analysis of the IRS Business Systems Modernization, a project that has already spanned a decade and consumed more than $3 billion, the paper explores quantifying stakeholder Sentiments and Confidence from documents, with a view to exploring how such measures may offer early indications of project progress and assist managers to prevent undesirable future outcomes.

Continue reading →

The First 60 Days: Update from the Director

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It is time for me to catch my breath and take a few minutes to report on what we have been up to at the Metropolitan Institute. Depending on how you count, I have been working in my role as the Director of the Metropolitan Institute for about 60 days, or since June of 2011 (when I began serving on the President’s Long Range Planning Task Force). As I do not want to bore you with all the details of what we have been up to at the Metropolitan Institute, I will give you the CliffsNotes version:

  • I have had the pleasure to meet with leaders across Virginia Tech. These leaders have included the President, Provost, several Vice Provosts and Vice Presidents, heads of academic units (e.g. Electrical Engineering, Management, etc), Development Officers, directors of research institutes, faculty, staff, and graduate students. During these meetings, I spent time listening to their thoughts about the future of Virginia Tech, their impressions of the Institute, their ideas on how to grow the Institute, and exploring avenues for collaboration.
  • Joe Schilling (Associate Director of the Metropolitan Institute) and I have met with leaders from various organizations including, among others, the US Green Building Council, IBM Center for the Business of Government, and IBM Smarter Cities Program, to explore collaborative research relationships.
  • We have done a lot of work to build a viable infrastructure for the Institute. The faculty of the School of Public and International Affairs have been open and receptive to the new vision for the Institute. For the first time, we now have seven fellows of the Institute (Ralph Buehler, Margaret Cowell, Matt Dull, Ralph P. Hall, Derek S. Hyra, Paul Knox, and Kris Wernstedt). The Institute will work to support these researchers as they collaborate on projects, outreach efforts, and preparation of grants. We look forward to welcoming even more faculty to the Institute. Much effort has gone into envisioning the future of the Institute. One outcome of this effort is that we now have six research themes that bring researchers, practitioners, and students together to solve the most pressing problems facing metropolitans. These research themes are: Megacities and the New Metropolis, Resilience, Sustainability, Policy Informatics, Transportation, and Urban Regeneration. We also have a new website. While we still have more to do in terms of setting up an infrastructure, we are off to a wonderful start.
  • Of course, we have submitted grant proposals and journal papers for publication. We also have been active participants in conferences and workshops (e.g. Second Conference on Community Resiliency) and a number of outreach activities.
  • The Institute launched the Policy Informatics Initiative, which is gaining momentum. We are starting a few collaborative research projects, planning a workshop, forming a book proposal, and exploring funding opportunities.

One of my favorite quotes is by my football idol, Pelé who noted “Enthusiasm is everything. It must be taut and vibrating like a guitar string.” In my role as the Director, I have to be enthusiastic. Being enthusiastic is easy when you are surrounded by good people who work hard and bring positive energy. My staff has been wonderful. They have welcomed me to the Institute, have bought into the new vision and strategy, and have supported me in all endeavors. They deserve a lot of credit for the things we have accomplished to date. I will continue to count on them as we take the Institute to greater heights.

I guarantee you that things are not going to slow down in the near future. We are hoping to develop new research collaborations, select visiting fellows and postdoctoral associates, submit several research proposals, and build mutually beneficial academic-industry partnerships. I am looking forward to my upcoming visit to the Blacksburg, the main campus of Virginia Tech, later this month. I will be briefing the Urban Affairs and Planning faculty about the Institute, meeting with leaders of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies, collaborating with researchers on proposals, and participating in meetings as part of the President’s Long Range Planning Task Force.

I want to thank all of you. You are sources of enthusiasm, counsel, and friendship. I thank you for your patience, as well as your generosity with time and resources. You have been vital sources of energy that I have drawn upon (and I will continue to do so).

Tomorrow I am off to Paris to give several talks at IÉSEG School of Management.  One is on designing innovation programs and the other is on building a capacity for interdisciplinary research.

Au revoir!