Individual Study

Plan

ANNE PFEIFER


Introduction
Dear Reader,

I am writing because I want to share my educational experience in CEP. I first came to UW because
I wanted to be a physical therapist due to a really great experience I had in high school interning at
a private physical therapy clinic. Then, during my freshman year, I pursued traditional pre-
requisite classes for a degree in Biology and I was miserable. I re-evaluated what drew me to
physical therapy and I concluded that what made me love the occupation wasnt the physical
aspects of the job but the community building that took place during one on one interactions.

At the same time, I took CEP 200 and found the missing link that I was looking for. In that class, I
felt like I had found a place where I could be my best self and a community that would push me to
expand my learning opportunities. I truly believe that I spent my time in the major making
decision that bettered myself, my community and the world around me that that all started with
my individual study plan. Being intentional with my education left me inspired and ready to take
on ant challenge I might face in the future.

Once in the major, my focus developed on its own. I spent the first two quarters in the program
reflecting on the defining moments in my education and I thought about how my time as an RA
and my classes in focus areas like American Ethnic Studies really changed my worldview. RAs
undergo intense preparation for the school year and what this experience taught me most about
was Diversity. For the first time in my education, I fully acknowledged the privilege I have and the
suffering that many who have not shared my experience have felt. This awareness inspires me
and I can honestly say that every day when I approach my classes and my life I think about what I
have learned. I decided to best channel this inspiration by minoring in Diversity and taking classes
that continually put me in places where I can make my interactions with others as authentic and
powerful as possible. I have learned the importance of framing all tasks with an equity lense and
how to be an accomplice to communities that are historically underserved. I hope that in the
future I can continue to help advocate for lessening the gap between underserved groups and
planning professionals. I want to continue learning about how to communicate and improve
planning processes to be equitable for all.

Finally, I will be using my time in CEP to prepare for my future because I want to be able to be able
to effectively engage with people from all walks of life. More than anything, I think CEP provides
powerful learning opportunities that have equipped me with the soft skills to be a community
leader. I have a passion for people and relationships that CEP helped stoke and I hope to never
lose it.

- Anne Pfeifer

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Table of Contents

Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 2
Table of Contents .................................................................................................................. 3
Visual Map of Courses .......................................................................................................... 4
Autumn 2015 ......................................................................................................................... 5
Winter 2016 ............................................................................................................................ 7
Spring 2016 ............................................................................................................................ 8
Summer 2016 ......................................................................................................................... 9
Autumn 2016 ....................................................................................................................... 10
Winter 2017 .......................................................................................................................... 12
Spring 2017 .......................................................................................................................... 14
Extracurricular Activities ................................................................................................... 16
Senior Project ...................................................................................................................... 17

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Visual Map of Courses

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Autumn 2015

CEP 300 (1): CEP Retreat

Course Description: Focuses on planning analysis assessment and development of the major.
Opportunities for community building and all-major policy deliberation and decisions. Workshops
for skill building in consensus, facilitation, and for major-specific activities such as developing
individual study plans and study abroad experiences.

The retreat is an important learning opportunity because not only does it build the
foundations for the relationships with other students in CEP but it also provides
opportunities to establish learning and community goals for the following year.

CEP 301 (5): The Idea of Community

Course Description: Theories of community and communal rights and responsibilities. Experience
building a learning community within major. Explores struggles for community in every sector of
life.

This class challenged my thinking in more ways than one. The philosophies that we learned
about will be applicable in the future when I interact with different communities and when
dealing with public policies. The ideas I have learned have already incorporated themselves
into my other classes like Historical Ecology and I have used them to engage in discussion
and problem solving.

CEP 400 (1): Governance Practicum

Course Description: Emphasizes personal and collective leadership, democratic decision making,
and learning through direct action and reflection. Explores and develops students' personal skills
as doers and leaders, while also learning how to form and function as effective groups.

This quarter I was part of Outreach and Admissions Committee. I utilized my skills I learned
as an RA to recruit people and help with the events subcommittee. Some events included
tabling at the Sustainability Fair in Red Square, Open House and CEP turns 21. I also
focused a lot of my efforts on getting the word about CEP out to the Resident Halls by
putting up posters and talking to my contacts about giving presentations.

ANTH 461 (5): Historical Ecology

Course Description: Explores a global range of case studies in the historical dimension of the
environment, human adaptation, and cultural change. Investigates the co-evolution of
environment and culture in archaeological and historical contexts. Develops a better
understanding of modern human-environmental dynamics as historically situated.

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I took this class because I wanted to learn more about how humans and the natural world
interact and collide. The main take away I learned was that everything is very
interconnected and moving forward many of the issues we face will need to be solved in an
interdisciplinary matter for us to achieve the best possible solutions.

URBDP 498 (1): Planning as a Profession

Course Description: This course gives students interested in the planning profession an
opportunity to understand the different pathways and career choices within the profession. This
course will introduce students to guest professionals in various planning careers and highlight key
issues, skills used, and tips to entering the field. This course focuses on professional practice
rather than analytical methods or theory.

Planning as a Profession was a very important seminar because the guest speakers gave
me the ability to see potential future internships and jobs and it gave me a better sense of
what skills need to be developed to succeed in the professional workplace.

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Winter 2016

CEP 302 (5): Environmental Response

Course Description: Explores issues of environmental crisis and societal responses. Readings and
reflective analysis from broad selection of authoritative sources to develop grounded perspective
in ecological literacy and consciousness. Concurrently, experiential education in challenges and
practical responses to building sustainable society through participation in community-based
environmental effort.

This class gave me practical experience in viewing official documents and interpreting them
in ways that could be applicable to planning. My take away was learning how to read
environmental reports effectively and being able to engage my knowledge about
interdisciplinary action I learned in ANTH 461.

SOC 360 (5): Introduction to Social Stratification

Course Description: Social class and social inequality in American society. Status, power, authority,
and unequal opportunity are examined in depth, using material from other societies to provide a
comparative and historical perspective. Sociological origins of recurrent conflicts involving race,
sex, poverty, and political ideology

The key aspect of this class was the focus on unequal opportunity and recurring conflicts
with race, sex, poverty and political ideology. Having a better idea about these issues not
only helped me understand groups that I may be interacting with in the future but it will
also give me the means to make sure their voices are heard. My take away goal for this
class was to gain a better understanding of how and why issues of social equity are
prevalent and how to lessen the impact of these issues in the future. It also counts toward
my contemporary/institutional requirement for my Diversity Minor.

C LIT 323 (5): Studies in the Literature of Emerging Nations

Course Description: Novels and short stories, from Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia.
Discusses relationship of Western literary genres to an oral literary tradition, as well as issues like
colonialism, gender relations, narrative technique, native and non-native languages.

What I think was the most interesting about this class was the opportunity to narratives
from a perspective that I myself have never experienced. I think so often literature can be
written from the perspective of the privileged party and getting the opportunity to
understand the writings of the underrepresented minorities was important. My take away
goal was to understand how these narratives compared to my own and to have a better
understanding of the multiplicity of the society in which I have a role. It also counts towards
my foundations requirement for my Diversity Minor.

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Spring 2016

CEP 303 (5): Social Structures and Processes

Course Description: Investigates use of formal and informal social structures and processes within
context of community and environment. Looks at patterns and institutions of social organization
and relationships among different sectors. Issues of interrelatedness, citizenship, knowledge, and
communication.

This class taught me the basics of many planning theories and practices that I have since
could utilize in real life projects. Because I am focusing in Public Participation, work with
elements within a real community gave me the knowledge of how to interact, assess and
craft planning action to use in the future. My takeaway goal was to focus on seeing the
interaction between different groups and to learn more about the processes.

GEOG 360 (5): Principles of GIS Mapping

Course Description: Origins, development, and methods of cartographic mapping. Principles of

data representation and map design for thematic mapping and spatial analysis. Introduction to
principles of geographic information systems.

I took this class for the practical skills that being able to understand GIS Mapping Provides.
I was not looking to go very in-depth understanding of GIS but I think that being able to
understand basic GIS and being able to communicate with people who understand GIS will
be a great skill.

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Summer 2016

CHID 399 & 498 (5): Local/Global Engagements Summer Internship Program

Course Description: Over the 9-week quarter, students will work as interns in change-oriented
Seattle-area organizations that have an international focus and participate in seminars to expand
and deepen their thinking on a range of questions such as: How do inequities in social and
political power and access to wealth manifest at local, regional, and global scales? How are
violence, oppression, exploitation, and exclusion produced and reproduced in the places we call
home and elsewhere? What creative methodologies can open visionary ideas about
transformative change among individuals and groups? What strategies and actions do individuals
and collectivities advocate and engage in to pursue and practice their visions of a healthier, more
equitable and just world?

I took this class to learn more about social justice theories, and to complete the CEP
Internship requirement. I do not think that I couldve foreseen how much this class has
shaped my learning this year when I registered for it in Spring of 2016. It challenged my
ways of thinking about myself, people of color, society and social injustices that are both
seen and unseen. It also challenged me emotionally. Many of the theories we engaged with
in the seminar were hard to grapple with but I am so glad that I now have a new
perspective on activist work to draw from as I venture out of the collegiate world and into
what comes next.

The second element of this class was an internship. I personally interned at El Centro de la
Raza, a non-profit in Beacon Hill. I worked with their Development Team to help prepare
and put on the Building the Beloved Community Gala that occurred on September 24th,
2016. I completed 166 hours and worked on projects such as: auction item procurement,
advertisement procurement, event program booklet, bios for presenters, auction item
pickup, and event decorations and displays.

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Autumn 2016

CEP 460 (5): Planning in Context

Course Description: Examines theory against backdrop of practice for broad historical
understanding of social, political, environmental planning. Critique from viewpoints, e.g., planning
history, ethics, ecofeminism, environmental justice, class and capitalism, planning and global
economy. Develop personalized history reflecting individual experience, professional experience,
and philosophical heritage of planning profession.

This class was an amazing opportunity. I worked on a team that partnered with Auburn for
the Livable City Year and we gained so many useful skills. I think the flow of the practicum
we learned in CEP 303 into CEP 460 is the best continuation of learning that I have had
while at University of Washington. I additionally took in a report writing position for Livable
City Year about the processes and experience that the CEP 460 class have with their
partnership with Auburn and that was so helpful. I learned real report writing skills and
what it means to work with an editor to produce something in a finite amount of time.

URBDP 598 (1): Race and Social Justice in Urban Planning

Course Description: This quarterly and continuing course will explore concepts of race, racism,
class, social justice, and make explicit their connections between design and planning. It does so
to build student understanding about how, and the degree to which, these disciplines have
historically addressed (or contributed to) these topics, and where they stand currently. This
exploration will include progress made, persistent challenges, and overt actions that have and
may continue to work in racist and unjust ways.

This class was so cool! We read The New Jim Crow & American Apartheid. It was striking to
see how historically racist planning and policies have impacted every aspect of current
society. The discussions helped bring to light some of the serious problems that we must
address as future community leaders. Because of the large amount of Masters and PhD
students in this class I felt somewhat shy to talk during discussions but being present to
listen and then to include what I was learning in this seminar into the work I was doing for
CEP 460 was hugely influential during my last year in the program.

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CEP 499 (5): TA for CEP 200

Course Description: Connects core and individual courses with field work. Group and individual
readings develop understanding of how students' internships and field placements constitute
element of community and environmental planning. Explores how what we do for a living is part
of our lives as citizens and public service.

This experience was hard. I did not understand how much effort went into planning
curriculum and being available to work with students. But, overall, I think the skills I learned
about communicating clearly and getting work done in a timely fashion will be very useful
in the future. I also really enjoyed this opportunity because I could recruit from CEP 200.
Emily and I spent a lot of time meeting with our student and teaching them about what it
means to be a CEP student which was awesome!

CEP 490(5): Senior Project

Course Description: This course focuses on developing your CEP Senior Project Proposal. It is
designed to help you build a credible and creative project grounded in sound research, design,
methodology, and evaluation. Through presentations, discussions, and exercises, we will explore
approaches in applied research; project design and strategy; and project management best
practices. By the end of the course, you will have completed a comprehensive proposal for your
project.

Throughout the three months I was in this class it was amazing to see how my ideas for a
senior project developed from one off ideas to an actual project. I enjoyed how this class
pushed me to complete parts of my project before it felt like they could be completed.
Having the project proposal and outline of my literature review was so helpful throughout
the rest of the year. While my product was much different than what I thought, it would be
making at this point in the year but this class established the foundations for the work that
I did through the rest of the year.

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Winter 2017

CEP 461 (5): Ethics and Identity

Course Description: Examination of personal, societal, vocational, environmental, planning ethics.
Readings and discourse on ethical foundations for public life. Individual and group readings on
values, human potential. Develops understanding of ecological context, moral responsibility, self-
awareness. Constructs positive, diverse view of humanity, environment regardless of race, gender,
ethnicity, beliefs.

I enjoyed this class because it gave me the opportunity to see how CEP has truly changed
the way I learn and digest new information. If I compare the way I felt in CEP 301 and how
overwhelmed I constantly was reading philosophy to the challenge but gratifying
experience in 461, I can really tell how much this program has done for me. This class
pushed me and my largest take away was from my final paper. I incorporated bell hooks
into and compared her to the other authors which was extremely exciting and gave me
huge experience reading different types of philosophy.

CEP 491 (1): Senior Project Prep Seminar II: Methods and Actualization

Course Description: Focuses on implementing the senior project/capstone, including revisions and
updates as seen fit.

This class was much more difficult than the previous senior project prep seminar. I think a
large part of this was because I did not have space in my schedule to take the actual class.
My biggest struggle was holding myself accountable when I didnt have as much time to
meet with an accountability group. In the end, I am happy with the result and the first draft
of my paper and I learned a lot about what it takes to work on a project without anyone
else holding you accountable for getting things done.

ENVIR 439 (3): Attaining a Sustainable Society

Course Description: Discusses diverse environmental issues, the importance of all areas of
scholarship to evaluating environmental challenges, and the connections between the past and
the future, to reveal integrative approaches to protect the long-term interests of human society

Beth Wheat is amazing! One of the best classes I have taken at UW. I felt that I was
seriously lacking in environmental classes and this class gave me everything I ever wanted.
I originally joined CEP because I was interested in sustainable development especially tiny
homes. This class wrapped that up with my current focus on equity and I learned how to
use an equity lense on issues of sustainability.

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COM 289 (5): Communication Power and Difference

Course Description: Explores how communication - from face-to-face to mass media messages -
reinforces or challenges conceptions of power, privilege, and difference along racial, ethnic,
gender, sexual, class, ability, religion, and other important lines. Examines how communication
practices, particularly media, shape inequality as well as our understanding of ourselves and the
world

I was very hopeful that this class would be more applicable to my focus in CEP, especially
since I took it even though it was during the senior project seminar. Overall, it was a great
review of topic that I already knew about and it was a first step in understanding how
media perpetuates systems of oppression and power.

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Spring 2017

CEP 462 (5): Community and Environment

Course Description: Capstone quarter merges core seminars, disciplinary courses in major,
community field experiences for mastery of personal knowledge and skills. Reflection and
synthesis of themes in major; engagement with contemporary issues. Compares theoretical
definitions of community and environment with individual philosophies and knowledge within
thoughtful, applied context.

The culminating CEP class. I appreciated all the time to wrap up my capstone and I am so
proud of the final product that I produced. I really found my groove this quarter and had a
great system of accountability with other students in the class. I felt that the intensity of
work combined with CEPs reflective nature prepared me for what is to come after
graduation.

AIS 475 (5): Decolonizing the Environmental Discourse

Course Description: This course examines the concept of environmental justice through a
decolonization lensgiving a voice to those who have been silenced in the official environmental
discourse. Through guest presentations, group work, facilitated discussions, readings, and
inclusive teaching strategies students will examine & explore current and past environmental
(in)justice cases. Some of the cases include; the Dakota Access Pipeline, Lummi Coal Terminal,
Flint, Michigan Uranium Mining in Navajo Nation, etc.

This class was so helpful in developing my final product for my senior project. Without it, I
dont believe that the CEP Equity Plan would be the same. It pushed me to think critically
about my positionality and being able to sit through uncomfortable situations. I also was
forced to reflect in this class on how white guilt has worked its way into my life as I have
learned more about systems of oppression and equity. I hope that in the I can continue to
have conversations like the ones I had in this class and that I can continue to pursue being
an accomplice in social justice action.

CEP 473 (3): Digital Design Practicum

Course Description: Uses digital technologies for mapping, drafting, modeling, and
communication. Includes real-world case study projects that focus on urban design and planning
issues.

I took this class to brush up and continue my pursuit of technical skills before I graduate.
This was helpful throughout my internship and I loved learning the basics of digital design. I
am sure that I will use these skills in the future when I make mock designs for outreach
materials.

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Internships

El Centro de la Raza

From June to September of 2016, I worked with El Centro de la Razas Development Team to help
prepare and put on the Building the Beloved Community Gala that occurred on September 24th,
2016. I completed 166 hours and worked on projects such as: auction item procurement,
advertisement procurement, event program booklet, bios for presenters, auction item pickup, and
event decorations and displays. During my time there, I procured over $40,000 in auction items
and ads, while maintaining multiple project databases. My main project was digitally designing the
gala program booklet which received positive reviews from over 500 guests and organization
executives. I learned a lot about how non-profit organizations work and being part of the
development team was a unique experience. Some of the skills, especially the data management,
that I developed during this time helped me in my work with SDOT.

Seattle Department of Transportation Urban Forestry

In January 2017, I started working for Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) as an Urban
Forestry Intern and I loved it! I created almost all the outreach materials for SDOTs Street Tree
Management Plan (STMP), and now that I have a taste for working on inclusive public engagement,
I cant stop. When I started, I was given a blank canvas and told to utilize my creativity and make
this communication plan my own. Since January, I created all the goals, objectives, key messages,
and activity descriptions for the STMP. I worked tirelessly to create a public facing website and
other communication materials, and to promote the STMP at community meetings and events. I
wrote a Racial Equity Toolkit and I am currently working on summarizing over 350 responses from
a community survey I created into a report for internal and community stakeholders.

My responsibilities included:

Developing and implementing publication materials for SDOTs Street Tree Management
Plan
Synthesizing technical information using multi-media resources and community meetings
to coordinate public outreach efforts.
Produced a Racial Equity Toolkit (RET) that was evaluated as one of the top ten excellently
written toolkits by SDOTs RET Reviewer

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Extracurricular Activities

Outside of CEP I wouldve loved to have been more involved in extracurriculars but I decided to
put my energy into working instead. During my freshman year, I lived in Haggett Hall and I worked
at the Husky Union Building for as many hours as I possibly could. At the same time, I worked at a
yoga studio in Des Moines on the weekends and at North Face in University Village.
Then, during my sophomore year, I continued to work at the HUB and was an RA in McCarty Hall.
This was probably the most involved I ever was with campus-wide extracurriculars. As an RA I
spent much of my time planning events and meeting with students. It was such an intensive job
that I could no longer work at the HUB. I learned a lot of valuable skills that are applicable to many
situations. I think the best skills I learned were policy enforcement and de-escalation/mediation
tactics. In the year that I was an RA I applied and interviewed for CEP. I made the choice to move
off campus for the remainder of my time at UW, which made being as involved as I was more
difficult. I also decided to start working again outside of Housing and Food Services.

Over the summer, I got hired by a Seattle based female running company called Oiselle that was
opening their first flagship store. I was incredibly involved in building the community around that
store and establishing many of the practices that took place there. I worked there for a year and
for the first 6 months of CEP. But, eventually I was working more hours that I could and felt like my
academics were suffering because of it. At the same time, I had become close friends with the
manager at another store in University called Marine Layer.

I switched from Oiselle to Marine Layer and spent the rest of junior year, the summer between
junior year and the first quarter of senior year working there. I worked here and held an
internship at El Centro de la Raza for the summer. I was putting in about 60 hours a week and
taking classes. Both were valuable experiences and it was interesting to see the difference
between the different organization work styles.

Marine Layer was a cool small company with an emphasis on community and I really enjoyed
working there. I learned a lot about how to interact with people in ways that made them
comfortable. I used these communication skills when surveying for CEP 303 and 460. I finally left
in January of 2017 to go to an internship with the City of Seattle. I felt that even though I enjoyed
the one on one interactions that I had working retail but I needed to move to something related to
the CEP curriculum. I feel that all the opportunities I have pursued outside of my classes have
given me unique experiences that I will use in the future.

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Senior Project

CEP: Committed to Equity in Planning addresses the lack of racial diversity in the Community,
Environment & Planning (CEP) program at the University of Washington. This project produces a
formal equity plan for CEP, ensuring that future programmatic efforts touch as many racially
diverse communities on campus as possible and establishes CEP students as leaders in social
equity and inclusion. This project evaluates the undergraduate experience and addresses issues
of race in a university setting. A qualitative survey addressing internal CEP stakeholders found that
there is a desire within the program to learn more about racial equity and to increase the racial
diversity of admitted students. Additionally, a quantitative comparison of CEP racial demographics
to those of the University of Washington revealed that CEP is a disproportionately white program
compared to the undergraduate population. Exploration into current diversity plans, definitions of
diversity, equality, equity and outreach best practices helped identify how to build an equity plan
that incorporates best practices and accountability measures. This plan reaffirms CEPs
commitment to equity and encourages CEP students and alumni to take control of their
education, learn about racial equity issues, and apply methods to improve the equity of the only
student run program on campus.

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