The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) unveiled today the names of 34 program participants selected to participate in its 2024 Culture and Community Design (CCD) program. The Culture and Community Design program runs from August through mid-December.
This is the second class of the immersive program where participants will examine the space between community building, arts and cultural work, and urban planning. The 2024 class is comprised of artists, organizers, local officials, and planners, who will work with two community organizations, serving underrepresented populations, to design projects and planning initiatives focused on arts and culture.
CCD is a component of ARC’s Culture, and Creative Placemaking Strategic Plan, which provides a blueprint for integrating arts and culture into ARC’s planning work to help build a thriving and healthy region. The program will be co-led by Rosten Woo, a Los Angeles-based artist, designer, writer, and educator. Woo produces civic-scale artworks and works as a collaborator and consultant to a variety of grassroots, non-profit organizations, and local governments such as Los Angeles Poverty Department, the Black Workers Center, as well as the city of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County.
His work has also been exhibited internationally at art and design institutes and can be found at public housing developments and shopping malls, on tugboats, and in parks. Woo is also the co-founder and former executive director of the Center for Urban Pedagogy, a New York-based, non-profit organization and winner of a national design award for institution achievement.
“We have a wonderful cohort excited about how to think of arts and community engagement in planning,” said Roshani Thakore, head of Community Engagement & Culture at ARC. “Over the past two years, we’ve been refining our community engagement and culture class. We can’t wait to see how the diversity in perspectives and experiences will shape their projects and ultimately the ecosystem of arts, culture and creative placemaking across the region.”
About CCD’s 2024 Chosen Community Partners
CCD class participants will explore community issues such as mobility justice, collective ownership, and community preservation by collaborating with two Community-Based Organizations (CBOs):
Village Skatepark ATL, located in Atlanta’s Bankhead neighborhood, is a family owned indoor skatepark nonprofit centering mobility, justice, youth engagement, and community building through skate culture.
The Kɘ’nekt, located in Atlanta’s Westview community, is a Black-led community collective based on mutual aid, solidarity economics, and collective wealth building.
CCD Class of 2024:
- Anna-Kay Sinclair, Atlanta Regional Commission, Program/Project Coordinator
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Aysha Pennerman, ADJ Designs, Artist
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Cara Soh, Page Southerland Page, Inc., Senior Project Manager, Associate
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Chantha Son, Atlanta Regional Commission, Senior Transportation Planner
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Charity Hamidullah, Artist/Muralist
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Christina Hiroko Kelly, DanceATL, Development Coordinator + Community Engagement
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Colline Hernandez-Ayala, Perkins & Will, Principal
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Daisy Wellcome, Perkins & Will, Marketing Coordinator
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Edith Courtney, Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, Cultural Affairs Project Coordinator
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Emida Roller, Emida Roller Productions, LLC, Artist/Muralist
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Emily Mottola, Decatur Arts Alliance, Project Manager
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Erica Chisolm, E L Creative LLC, Muralist, Creative Placemaking Consultant
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Gavin Bernard, Reimagine ATL, Teaching Artist & Producer
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Haven Hendrix, Gwinnett County, Planner I
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Hope Pollard, Gwinnett County, Senior Community Planner
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Jacquelyn Pritz, Catching Mangoes Dance, Founder and Emory College of Arts and Sciences, Program Coordinator
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Jennifer Ramirez-Soto, 85 Community Development Corporation, Bilingual Outreach Specialist
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Justine Schwartz, Atlanta Regional Commission, Education and Public Engagement Specialist
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Kelsey Mitchell, Perkins & Will, Designer II
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LaQuita Williams, City of Sandy Springs, Planner I
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Lauren Wiggins, Atlanta Regional Commission, Climate and Resilience Project Manager
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Maria Edwards, Hootsuite, Senior Program Manager
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Marisa Carter, Hummingbird, Community Engagement Strategist
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Marissa Jackson, City of Fayetteville, Senior Planner
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Mayira Bunting, City of Doraville, Business and Community Engagement
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Nicole Gilbert, City of Fayetteville, Planner
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Nicole Le, Artist
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Paul Lorenc, City of Lawrenceville, Planner
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Rebecca Payoute, Gwinnett County, Planner II
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Ryan Sellers, Planning and Zoning Consultant
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Sarah Lawrence, Design Emporium LLC, Founder & Principal Designer
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Sarah Kitchens, Get Out The Bed Productions, Creative Director and Owner
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Steven Aceto, City of Atlanta Department of City Planning, Urban Planner
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Tyrone Webb, Georgia Council for the Arts, Rural and Community Programs Manager
For more about the Culture and Community Design program, visit Culture and Community Design Class – ARC (atlantaregional.org).