2021 National Planning Awards

Kristen Asp is the principal planner for the city of Glendale, California. As an undergraduate student, she served as a student representative for the APA California Chapter. She also served as the Los Angeles section director and vice president for administration for the chapter. Asp holds a bachelor's degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and a master's degree from Woodbury University.

Ben Hitchings is principal at Green Heron Planning, LLC, in Durham, North Carolina, and has more than 25 years of experience working on planning issues. He is the former planning director for the Town of Chapel Hill and the Town of Morrisville in North Carolina. He received his master's degree in planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a bachelor's degree from Amherst College and is a fellow of the American Institute of Certified Planners. An active association member, Hitchings is the past president of the APA North Carolina Chapter. He co-chaired the Student and New Member Task Force and recently chaired the Chapter Presidents Council.

Erick is a transportation and urban planner employed with the Santa Fe Metropolitan Planning Organization as the MPO Officer. Aune also serves as the immediate past president of the American Planning Association's New Mexico Chapter and President of the New Mexico Resiliency Alliance (NMRA), dedicated to bringing resources to underserved communities throughout New Mexico. Aune graduated from Michigan State University with a master's degree in natural resource development and is a 2007 Fellow of the Regional Institute of Health and Environmental Leadership and served as a local government specialist in Albania working for the Peace Corps in 2003-04.

Eric S. Bosman is a vice president at Kimley-Horn, where he leads interdisciplinary planning efforts including public space, land use, multi-modal transportation, and transit initiatives. Bosman is a former president of the Georgia Chapter of the APA, was a co-host of the 2014 National Planning Conference in Atlanta, and is a board member of the Georgia Planning Memorial Foundation. He holds a bachelor's degree in design from Clemson University and a Master of Architecture and Master of Urban and Regional Planning degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Angela Brooks is the director of the Illinois Program of the Corporation for Supportive Housing and was previously a real estate developer for the Chicago Housing Authority. Brooks is a native of Seattle and a graduate of Jackson State University, where she received her bachelor's degree in urban studies, and the University of New Orleans, where she received a master's degree in urban and regional planning. An active member of APA since graduate school, Brooks has held numerous leadership positions including past chair of the Housing and Community Development Division, vice president of programs for the Planning and the Black Community Division, chair of the Diversity Task Force, and co-chair of the Housing Policy Guide. She has also served on the City of Seattle Planning Commission and Martin Luther King County Boundary Review Board.

Chanelle Nicole Frazier is an emerging planner and grant writer based in Houston, Texas. Frazier's first foray into planning was with the Emancipation Economic Development Council, where she worked with a team of artists to develop and install projects along the corridor that were informative and relative to the community they were being placed in. She is presently working on projects with the Houston Parks Board, OST/South Union GO Neighborhood Project, and Real Inc. LLC. in the capacity of a planner and serves as the director of chapter engagement for APA's Women and Planning Division. Frazier is interested in planning and policy that impacts women, single mothers, and children, and always approaches projects with this population in mind. Frazier holds a master's degree in urban planning and environmental policy from Texas Southern University.

Allison joined Orion Planning + Design in September 2016 and is currently based in Missoula, Montana. Bringing 15 years of professional planning experience to the team, her areas of specialization include comprehensive plans, code development, public engagement, project management, mapping, and analysis, with a focus on collaboration as a means of achieving positive outcomes. Mouch has wide-ranging experience working with private developers and public clients on forward-thinking land use and design solutions, fostering meaningful partnerships that result in sound policy and planning decisions. She is AICP and an active member of the American Planning Association (APA), past president of APA's Western Central Chapter, and currently sits on the Montana Association of Planners (MAP) Board of Directors. She holds a bachelor's degree in architecture from Miami University (Ohio), and a master's degree in urban and environmental planning from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

Stephanie Rolley is a professor and head of the Kansas State University Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional & Community Planning. A leader in planning and design education, she was named one of the Most Admired Educators by DesignIntelligence for three consecutive years since 2016-2017 and received the 2020 ASLA Jot. D. Carpenter Teaching Medal. Rolley is committed to enhancing professional planning and design education through service and leadership. She earned a bachelor's degree in landscape architecture from Kansas State University and a master's degree in city planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Brenda Case Scheer is a professor emeritus at the University of Utah College of Architecture + Planning.  She was dean of the college for 11 years, following a successful architecture practice and academic career. Brenda has more than 32 papers and book chapters, 32 research grants, as well three books. Her two most important research areas are urban morphology theory and aesthetic regulation of the environment. Her most recent book is The Evolution of Urban Form: Typology for Planners and Architects. She is chair of the Salt Lake City Planning Commission and past chair of the Girl Scouts of Utah. 

Perris Straughter is the assistant commissioner for planning and predevelopment for New York City's Department of Housing Preservation and Development. He oversees a staff of 30 working on the development of thousands of units of affordable housing. Previously Straughter was the director of Queens and Staten Island planning. He also serves on the American Planning Association's Diversity Committee. Before coming to New York Perris was a supervising planner in the city of Newark, New Jersey, where he coordinated planning and zoning approvals processes for the city. He helped lead the comprehensive overhaul of Newark's zoning code and master plan. During his tenure in Newark, he also served as the coordinator of the Newark Public Art Program. Straughter was a leader in Newark's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) Community, including organizing Newark's LGBTQ Pride events and serving as chairperson of the mayor's LGBTQ Advisory Commission. Straughter has a master's in public affairs and urban and regional planning from Princeton University.