Many students have used their involvement with the practicum course as a spring board to pursue independent research projects on themes and issues related to planning, development, governance, housing, and informality in Santo Domingo. These research projects have often served as the foundation of  Master’s theses, professional reports, and dissertations. Link to the theses listed below to explore in more detail.

Shavone Otero, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2018

• The Informal Canvas: Murals and Participatory Planning in
  Informal Settlements in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Crysbel Tejada, MA Latin American Studies, 2018

• El Derecho a La Tierra: Rural and Urban Grassroots Resistance in the Dominican Republic

Julia Duranti-Martínez, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2018

• Amor a la lucha: Women’s Narratives of Community Development and Resilience in Los Platanitos, Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic

Caroline Daigle, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2018

• “There is no Institution Stronger than the Church:” Situating Evangelical Actors in the Institutional Landscape of Development Practice in the Dominican Republic

Brent Perdue, MS Community and Regional Planning/MS Public Policy, 2017

• Solid Waste Management in Greater Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Jose Rubio-Zepeda, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2017

• Liminal Lives: Haitian Migration to the Barrio of La Zurza, Santo
  Domingo, Dominican Republic

Samuel Tabory, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2016

• Co-production and Enterprise Culture: Negotiating Local Urban
  Development Culture in Santo Domingo’s ‘Barrios Populares’

Kelly Strickler, MS Community and Regional Planning, 2015

• Green Stormwater Infrastructure in an Informal Context: Feasibility and Potential Stormwater Impacts of Implementing Rain Gardens and Rain Barrels in Peri-Urban Santo Domingo

Tania Davila, MS Community and Regional Planning, 2012

• At the Margin of the Park: Social Inequality in Urban Environmental Planning in the Santo Domingo Greenbelt

Omar Diaz, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2011

• Participatory Research with Children in Informal Settlements: Understanding Child Perspective through the Use of Drawing Exercises in Los Platanitos, Dominican Republic

Regina Casey, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2011

• ¡Súbete al Progreso! Narratives of Progress and Social Mobility Surrounding the Santo Domingo Metro

Christeen Pusch, MS Community and Regional Planning, 2010

• An Analysis of Informal Housing: The Case of Los Platanitos, Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic

Shawn Strange, MS Community and Regional Planning, 2010

• The Integration of Emergency Economies in Developing Countries: The Case of Los Platanitos, Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic

Meredith Bossin, MS Community and Regional Planning/MA Latin American Studies, 2009

• Women, Employment, and Empowerment in the Dominican Republic: The case of Los Platanitos, Santo Domingo