Todd Swanstrom is the E. Desmond Lee Endowed Professor of Community Collaboration and Public Policy Administration at UMSL. (Photo by August Jennewein)

The older parts of the St. Louis region have faced serious challenges in the past 40 years. But some neighborhoods have done better than others. What explains this success?

Todd Swanstrom, the E. Desmond Lee Endowed Professor of Community Collaboration and Public Policy Administration at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, and Hank Webber of Washington University in St. Louis will explore St. Louis neighborhoods that have rebounded from decline. They will present their findings at the free event “Neighborhood change in the St. Louis region since 1970: What explains neighborhood success?” from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 10 in the Lee Auditorium at the Missouri History Museum, Lindell Boulevard and DeBaliviere Avenue in St. Louis’ Forest Park. A reception will follow. 

The “rebound communities” will also be the subject of future UMSL “What’s Brewing” breakfast forums that will take place in neighborhoods with local activists telling their stories of neighborhood resilience.

Swanstrom, who holds a joint appointment with the Public Policy Research Center, Public Policy Administration program and Department of Political Science, splits his time between the classroom and working in the community on applied policy research. He has written six books including “Place Matters: Metropolitics for the Twenty-first Century” and is a member of the MacArthur Foundation’s Research Network on Building Resilient Regions. Through Swanstrom’s endowed professorship, he has helped form the Community Builders Network of Metro St. Louis, an association of community-building nonprofit organizations devoted to building vibrant neighborhoods.

Webber has been WUSTL’s chief administrative officer since 2008. He is also a professor of practice at the Brown School and adjunct professor at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts. He teaches courses on community development, health policy, strategic management and social welfare policy. His research has centered on community development, mixed-income housing and the role of anchor institutions in urban development.

Media Coverage:
St. Louis Magazine