UPP Grad Receives First Place in UIC’s annual Image of Research competition
Urban planning and policy student Jenna Pollack was honored with first place in the moving image/live-action category for “Community Voices for Community Change in McKinley Park” in UIC's annual image of Research competition held in Spring 2023. Pollack created the video when she was a teaching assistant and studio manager for the Master of City Design program’s 2022 Chicago Charrette. The documentary clip features two McKinley Park residents, Kate Eakin and Jessica Fong, describing the changing industrial development landscape in their neighborhood.
“My research is rooted in community-led planning processes, progressive economic development and grassroots expressions,” Pollak writes. “As part of the studio’s design of three cutting-edge public infrastructure and civic realm projects, I aimed to creatively capture the voice of residents to drive the process rather than those of the students or potential developers.
“Ultimately, producing a documentary was one of the strategies I employed to reflect back to residents the beauty, complexity and diversity of voices that drive this work.”
View more about the winners and the honorable mention honorees on the Image of Research website.
Read more about the Master of City Design program on their website.