{"id":6846,"date":"2013-11-11T15:16:51","date_gmt":"2013-11-11T20:16:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/college.unc.edu\/?p=6846"},"modified":"2024-07-02T14:27:06","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T14:27:06","slug":"jackbuilt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=6846","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The School That Jack Built\u2019: Planning department history celebrated in new book"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"JackBuiltcityandregionalplanningbookcover\"<\/a>Two UNC alumni have compiled a comprehensive, entertaining history of Carolina\u2019s city and regional planning department, which was the seventh planning program in the country, first in the South, and the first to be based in the social sciences.<\/p>\n

The 186-page book, The School That Jack Built: City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 1945-2012 <\/i>by Edward J. Kaiser \u201966 and Karla Rosenberg \u201912, is peppered with observations and anecdotes by alumni and faculty, along with 100 photos of people, occasions and places. The co-authors started working on the book in 2010, culling through boxes of materials including scrapbooks, photos and course catalogues, as well as interviewing faculty and alumni.<\/p>\n

The \u201cJack\u201d in the title is Jack Parker, a native of Novia Scotia who was hired in 1945 to start a planning program at UNC before he had even finished his own master\u2019s degree at MIT. He led the department until his retirement in 1974, and continued as an informal adviser to faculty and alumni for another 25 years.<\/p>\n

\"Jack<\/a>
Jack Parker was hired in 1945 to start a planning program at UNC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Co-author Kaiser, who graduated from UNC\u2019s doctoral planning program and then taught there for 35 years, called Parker \u201ca people person.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was very interested in people and their aspirations, and began mentoring \u00a0students while recruiting them to UNC, continuing through their tenure at Carolina and, for many alumni, well into their careers,\u201d Kaiser said. \u00a0\u201cHe was known for having parties in his backyard garden (a photo of the Ransom Street garden is pictured on page 20), and he would encourage students, asking them, \u2018What do you want to do in life?\u2019 He did that well into the 1990s.\u201d<\/p>\n

Co-author Rosenberg, who has a master\u2019s in social work and city and regional planning from UNC, is interested in pursuing a career in historic preservation. She said the program\u2019s placement in the social sciences sets it apart and makes it special.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe refer to a quote in the book about how the program really needed to be in a place that emphasizes critical thinking and the humanities, because you are dealing with people and not just hard infrastructure,\u201d she said. \u201cI think that has been really good for the department — that openness to people from different backgrounds — business, architecture, even biology. We can all bring something to the table.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Pamela<\/a>
Pamela (Jewett) Hitchcock ’58<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The history of one department also provides a window into big changes happening at the University at the time, like when women and African-American students were admitted for the first time. One of the photo \u201cgems\u201d the duo uncovered in their treasure hunt appears on page 50 of the book. It\u2019s a picture of alum Pam (Jewett) Hitchcock \u201958 smoking a pipe.<\/p>\n

Rosenberg said they found the photo glued to a piece of construction paper. Women were not allowed to enroll as undergraduate students in the College of Arts and Sciences prior to 1963, but they did enroll in graduate programs. Between 1946 and 1960, 20 women enrolled in the planning program.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the \u201850s, most male students smoked in class, especially in seminars,\u201d Hitchcock, the woman pictured in the photo, writes. \u201cWhen asked a question, they would take out a tobacco pouch, fill their pie, stamp down the tobacco, light up and take a few puffs — before answering the question. As a nonsmoker and the only female, I was at a distinct disadvantage, so for a brief time, I tried smoking a pipe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The book will be celebrated at an alumni panel event<\/a> Nov. 14 at 5:30 p.m. in Gerrard Hall. The co-authors also interviewed panel participant George Williams \u201968, the first African-American student admitted to the program, for the book. Williams is an architect in Durham.<\/p>\n

\"Karl<\/a>
Karl Schmidt (center, with pointer) instructs his class in site design in the attic studio of Gardner Hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI think that the Carolina experience gave me some balance, from the standpoint of social impacts and issues,\u201d Williams writes in the book. \u201cIt definitely taught me about advocacy and advocating for those who don\u2019t have the ability or the wherewithal to advocate for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roberto Quercia, a 1990 alumnus, because the first, third-generation faculty member to become chair of the department, when he assumed the position in July 2012.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have become a department of many voices [today], contributing to finding planning solutions in economic development, housing and community development, land use and environmental planning, placemaking and real estate development, and transportation,\u201d Quercia said. \u201cWe can push the boundary of the kind of department we want. This to me is an incredible opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information about the Nov. 14 event and the book (which is available in digital or hard copy), visit http:\/\/planning.unc.edu\/jack<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two UNC alumni have compiled a comprehensive, entertaining history of Carolina\u2019s city and regional planning department, which was the seventh planning program in the country, first in the South, and the first to be based in the social 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