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There's still time to apply! Accepting applications for Fall 2026 with scholarship support available. Apply now!
Teaching Assistant Professor
Stefan Chavez-Norgaard is a Teaching Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the Korbel School's Douglas and Mary Scrivner Institute of Public Policy. He teaches courses related to urban planning, public policy analysis, ethics, and policy writing, as well as an applied lab-based course on housing policy. Chavez-Norgaard's research lies at the intersection of procedural justice and urban development, with an eye toward equity. Specific areas of focus include urban planning history and theory, local-government and land-use law, research on public policies that produce more affordable housing, and mixed-methods research focused on planning practice and urban governance in the related but distinct late-liberal contexts of South Africa and the United States. Stefan is passionate about participatory democracy and how cities' public/private arrangements affect equitable urban development. His dissertation examined areas of apartheid-era forced relocation in South Africa and how master plans have been implemented and repurposed in these geographies by residents and planners. His active and forthcoming research explores possibilities for equitable, democratic urban development and regional planning in Denver and Colorado.
Chavez-Norgaard received his PhD in Urban Planning from the Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation in 2024. He also holds a Master in Public Policy degree from the Harvard Kennedy School, and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy and Urban Studies from Stanford University, with interdisciplinary honors in Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. He is an active member of several professional associations, including the American Association of Geographers (AAG); American Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP); Urban Affairs Association (UAA); and Society for American City and Regional Planning History (SACRPH).
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Scrivner Institute
Public Policy
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2026. “Contesting Urban Geopolitical Hegemony through Local-Level Land-Use Regulation.” Urban Geography. Under review.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2026. “Social Constructivism in Bus Rapid Transit Corridor Planning: Social Actors and Their Contestations in Reshaping Denver’s East Area.” Urban Studies. Revise & Resubmit.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2024. "Repurposing Racial Modernism: Specters of Planning's Past, a Contested Present, and Alternative Planning Futures." Journal of Planning Literature. OnlineFirst: 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1177/088541222412563.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2024. "Place Renaming, Jurisdictional Integration, and Political Representation: Lessons from South Africa." Planning Perspectives. OnlineFirst: 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/02665433.2024.2324010.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2023. "A Narrow View of Planning, with Enduring Consequences: The Case of California High-Speed Rail." In Interface: Resistance and Response in Planning, Susan S. Fainstein and John Forester, eds. Planning Theory and Practice. 24(2): 264-268. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649357.2023.2190681.
Meyer, Miranda and Stefan Norgaard. 2022. "Mnemonic Land War: Memory Constellations Through Lebanon and South Africa." Memory Studies, 15(6): 1393-1405. https://doi.org/10.1177/17506980221133516.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2022. "From 'Citizen Jane' to an Institutional History of Power and Social Change: Problematizing Urban Planning's Jane Jacobs Historiography." Journal of Planning History, 22(2): 95-118. https://doi.org/10.1177/15385132211070512.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2022. "Planning, Violence, and Crisis in Sociohistorical Perspective: Crime, Capital, Commodities, and Cartelization in Tancítaro, Michoacán." Critical Planning, 25: 147-168. https://doi.org/10.5070/CP825051413.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2021. "Violence as a Genre of Urban Life: Urban Sustainability and (in)Security in South African Cities." Journal of Urban Affairs, 45(3): 630-646. https://doi.org/10.1080/07352166.2021.1977140.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2021. "Modernization through Capitalization: The Hidden costs of Ethiopia's Gibe III Dam and NESTown Initiative." Human Geography, 14(3): 381-395. https://doi.org/10.1177/19427786219991.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2026 (Expected). “Cataloguing Toward a Place-Based Atlas: Hinterlands of the Capitalocene in Biosphere 2.” In: Urban Humanities 2: An (Un)Volume on Place, Pedagogy, and Practice. Jonathan Banfill, Jacqueline Barrios, Matthew Bernstine, Jonathan Jae-an Crisman, Aaron Shkuda, Jonathan Stitelman, Gus Wendel, and Kenny H. Wong, eds. New York and London: Routledge. Forthcoming.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2025. “Bottom-up Governance for Resilient Urban Futures? Intersections and Tensions from Mahikeng, South Africa.” In Resilient Futures for Small and Medium-Sized Cities. Pp. 359–374. Stephen Kofi Diko, Seth Asare Okyere, Louis Kusi Frimpong, Stephen Leonard Mensah, and Matthew Abunyewah, eds. New York and London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003588801.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2024. "Chapter 10: Speculative Desire and Residential Reappropriation: Johannesburg's Ponte City from Apartheid to the Present." In In Whose Place? Confronting Vestiges of Colonialism and Apartheid. Ali Hlongwane, Hilton Judin and Arianna Lissoni, eds. Johannesburg: Jacana Media. https://jacana.co.za/product/in-whose-place-confronting-vestiges-of-colonialism-and-apartheid/.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2023. "Chapter 11: On the Need for Sustainable Digital Urban Infrastructure in 21st Century South African Cities." In Reimagining Urban Planning in Africa. Cobbinah, Patrick B. and Eric Gaisie, eds. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://www.cambridge.org/us/universitypress/subjects/earth-and-environmental-science/environmental-policy-economics-and-law/reimagining-urban-planning-africa.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan, and Miranda Meyer. 2025. ‘“Introduction to the Special Forum: Remembering Territory, Territorializing Memory,’ In: Territorial Memory: Political Interventions, Spatial Contestations.” GeoHumanities. Vol. 11(2): 245–253. https://doi.org/10.1080/2373566X.2025.2514275.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan, Leah Montange, Jah Sayers, and Megan Ybarra. 2022. "Introduction:' Making Abolition in Geography." Society + Space. https://www.societyandspace.org/forums/making-abolition-in-geography.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2024. "Review of: Bourdieu in the City: Challenging Urban Theory." Journal of Cultural Geography. 41(2): 209-211. http://doi.org/10.1080/08873631.2024.2357890.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2023. “Review of: Making a Modern U.S. West: The Contested Terrain of a Region and Its Borders, 1898–1940 by Sarah Deutsch.” Historical Geography. Vol. 51, 73–76. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/963914.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2023. "Review of: America's Frozen Neighborhoods: The Abuse of Zoning, by Robert C. Ellickson." Journal of the American Planning Association (JAPA). 89(4): 598-599. http://doi.org/10.1080/01944363.2023.2206325.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2022. "Review: The Paradox of Urban Revitalization: Progress and Poverty in America's Postindustrial Era, by Howard Gillette, Jr." Journal of the American Planning Association, 89(1): 151-152. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944363.2022.2109927.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2021. "Review of: Safari Nation, by Jacob Dlamini." Historical Geography. Vol. 49. 84-87. https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/17/article/896239.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan, Jennifer Greenfield, and Kaitlyn Sims. 2025. “Colorado Cash Dividend Pilot Program Parameters, Costs, and Potential Benefits.” A white paper prepared by the Scrivner Institute of Public Policy produced for Thinking Forward LLC and the Denver Basic Income Project. December. Available at: https://korbel.du.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Scrivner_Colorado_Cash_Dividend_White_Paper_December_2025.pdf.
Casey, Alex, Stefan Chavez-Norgaard, Susan Daggett, Arian Dehnow, and Luke Teater. 2025. “Examining Relationships between Eliminating Parking Minimums and New Housing Construction Using a Terner Housing Simulator Tool.” A white paper produced by the Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute, Scrivner Institute of Public Policy, and TernerLabs. Available at: https://www.law.du.edu/sites/default/files/2025-07/Examining%20Relationships%20between%20Eliminating%20Parking%20Minimums%20and%20New%20Housing%20Construction%20Using%20a%20Terner%20Housing%20Simulator%20Tool%20-%20August%202025%20r2.pdf.
Norgaard, Stefan and Victor Chen. 2023. "Denver, CO" and "Pueblo, CO." Essays on City Histories of Redlining. Support from the American Council of Learned Societies Mapping Inequality Project. Available at: https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining/map/CO/Pueblo/context and https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining/map/CO/Denver/context.
Norgaard, Stefan et al. 2020. "In The Weeds: Securing a Grass-Mowing Contract in Stockton, CA"; "You Get What You Pay For: Reforming Procurement in Naperville, Illinois"; and "In The Green: Negotiating Rail Expansion in Somerville, MA." Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative. Cases each include written research manuscript, educator and practitioner teaching guides, and slideshows. 22 June. https://www.cityleadership.harvard.edu/cases/negotiation-teaching-case-set.
Greenfield, Jennifer C., Kaitlyn Sims, and Stefan Chavez-Norgaard. 2025. “A Colorado Guaranteed Income Program Could Help Families, but the Costs are High.” The Conversation. 12 December. Available at: https://theconversation.com/a-colorado-guaranteed-income-program-could-help-families-but-the-costs-are-high-269082.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan and Susan Daggett. 2025. “Denver Study Shows Removing Parking Requirements Results in More Affordable Housing Being Built.” The Conversation. 16 October. Available at: https://theconversation.com/denver-study-shows-removing-parking-requirements-results-in-more-affordable-housing-being-built-263889.
Slay, Elisabeth. 2025. “In Denver, Simulator-Run Study Says Parking Rule Change Could Boost Home Construction by 12.5%.” November 5. Available at: https://www.homes.com/news/in-denver-simulator-run-study-says-parking-rule-change-could-boost-home-construction-by-12-5/1545357744/. Quoted.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2025. “From West Harlem to Manhattanville: Columbia University as Planner, Occupier, and Developer.” Progressive City: Radical Alternatives. Part of Progressive City’s “Contesting the University as Planner, Occupier, and Developer” series. September 30. https://progressivecity.net/from-west-harlem-to-manhattanville-columbia-university-as-planner-occupier-and-developer/.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan, Katharina Liesenberg, and Michael Lucas. 2025. “Problem-Solving at the Community Scale: A Deweyan Approach to the Democratic Practices of Minoritized Groups within the United States, South Africa, and Australia.” Ash Center Occasional Paper Series. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Kennedy School Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation. 1–30. Available at: https://ash.harvard.edu/resources/problem-solving-at-the-community-scale-a-deweyan-approach-to-the-democratic-practices-of-minoritized-groups-within-the-united-states-south-africa-and-australia/.
Chavez-Norgaard, Stefan. 2024. "Grover Cleveland (1885-1889, 1893-1897): Regulating Railroads and Intervening in Labor Disputes." The Eno Center for Transportation. 16 August. https://enotrans.org/article/grover-cleveland-1885-1889-1893-1897-regulating-railroads-and-intervening-in-labor-disputes/.
Moreno, Juan, Stefan Chavez-Norgaard, and Mia Winther-Tamaki. 2023. "Mesh Together." Urban Omnibus. 4 May. https://urbanomnibus.net/2023/05/mesh-together/.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2021. "Transformations and Continuities: Historicizing America's National Interest in Cities." Columbia GSAPP URBAN Magazine. December. https://www.arch.columbia.edu/books/reader/823-urban-mag-fall-2021/#reader-anchor-2.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2018. "Distant Neighbors: Innovative Approaches to Development across Geographies." The Harvard Kennedy School Review. Cambridge, MA: Vol. 18: 153-162. https://studentreview.hks.harvard.edu/distant-neighbors-innovative-approaches-to-development-across-geographies/.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2018. "In South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa Can Save the ANC." The Harvard Kennedy School Review. 30 March. https://studentreview.hks.harvard.edu/in-south-africa-cyril-ramaphosa-can-save-the-anc/.
Norgaard, Stefan. 2016. "Why We Need to Build Just and Inclusive Cities." The Ford Foundation Equals Change Blog. 10 June. http://www.fordfoundation.org/ideas/equals-change-blog/posts/why-we-need-to-build-just-and-inclusive-cities/."
Aspen Institute “Weave” Awards Weaver Grant Recipient and Principal Investigator ($225k; 2026–2029)
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy Grant Recipient, Co-PI: “Bridging the Code Gap: Evaluating the Impact of Commercial vs. Residential Building Codes on Missing-Middle Housing in Colorado.” ($50k; 2026)
University of Denver Korbel Research Fund (KRF) grant recipient for student mentorship research project related to housing production in Colorado ($7.5k; 2025–2026).
University of Denver Center for Community Engaged Scholarship and Learning (CCESL)
DU 4D “Stars in Our Constellation” Award Winner, Spring 2025
University of Denver 4D Infusion Grant ($1k; 2024–2025).
Resident, "Counterpath." Denver, CO. Spring 2024 - present.
Recipient, Gary Gaile Travel Award, Development Geographies Specialty Group (DGSG), American Association of Geographers (AAG). Denver, CO. Spring 2023.
Recipient, Graduate Student Travel and Research Award, AAG Socialist and Critical Geography Specialty Group. New York, NY. Spring 2022.
Participant, Detroit Fellowship, Humanity in Action (HIA), Detroit, MI, Fall 2019.
Member, Board of Directors, Rikers Debate Project. New York, NY. 2016-2018.
Sigmund G. Ginsburg Urban Fellows Founder's Award, New York City Urban Fellows Program. New York, NY. May 2017. "
PPOL 3701: Urban Politics (Fall 2024)
PPOL 3300: Ethics in Public Policy (Winter 2025)
PPOL 4702: Policy Writing (Winter 2025, Spring 2025, Winter 2026, Spring 2026)
PPOL 2701: Public Policy Analysis (Spring 2025)
PPOL 2450: Career/Professional Skills for Public Policy through Client-Driven Case Study (Winter 2026, Spring 2026)
PPOL 4350: Policy Lab: Housing Policy (Spring 2025, Spring 2026)
PPOL 2450: Career/Professional Skills for Public Policy through Client-Driven Case Study (Winter 2026, Spring 2026)
Ph.D., Urban Planning, Columbia University, 2024
M.P.P., Political and Economic Development, Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government, 2019
B.A., Public Policy and Urban Studies, Stanford University, 2015
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