Lisa Servon is an American professor who holds the position of chair of the City and Regional Planning Department at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. She specializes in studies of urban poverty,

community development The United Nations defines community development as "a process where community members come together to take collective action and generate solutions to common problems." It is a broad concept, applied to the practices of civic leaders, activist ...

economic development In economics, economic development (or economic and social development) is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and object ...

, and issues of gender. She is one of the primary faculty in the Community and Economic Development concentration. Her research has explored economic insecurity, consumer financial services, and financial justice.

Background and education

Servon received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...

and went on to earn a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

history of art The history of art focuses on objects made by humans for any number of spiritual, narrative, philosophical, symbolic, conceptual, documentary, decorative, and even functional and other purposes, but with a primary emphasis on its aesthetics ...

from the University of Pennsylvania. Her Ph.D. is in

urban planning Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...

from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

Career

Prior to joining the faculty at

PennDesign The University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School of Design is the design school of the University of Pennsylvania, a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It offers degrees in architecture, landscape architecture, ...

, Servon was a professor of management and urban policy at

The New School The New School is a Private university, private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for p ...

. She also served as dean at the Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy. In addition to several books (see below), Servon has contributed to ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'', ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

'', and ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

''. She has also appeared on

PBS News Hour ''PBS News Hour'', previously stylized as ''PBS NewsHour'', is the news division of PBS and an American daily evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations since October 20, 1975. It airs seven nights a week, and ...

, Marketplace Money, and

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...

. Her research is also featured in the documentary ''Spent: Looking for Change''. Servon's most recent work focuses on alternatives to traditional banks used by many Americans, including check cashers and

payday lenders A payday loan (also called a payday advance, salary loan, payroll loan, small dollar loan, short term, or cash advance loan) is a short-term unsecured loan, often characterized by high interest rates. These loans are typically designed to cover ...

. Servon worked as a teller for several months at both a check casher and a payday lender seeking to shed light on why people are turning away from banks. The resulting work is called ''The Unbanking of America: How the New Middle Class Survives''.

Major publications

*''The Unbanking of America: How the New Middle Class Survives'' (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017) *''Otra Vida es Posible: Prácticas Económicas Alternativas Durante la Crisis'' - With

Manuel Castells Manuel Castells Oliván (; born 9 February 1942) is a Spanish sociologist. He is well known for his authorship of a trilogy of works, entitled '' The Information Age: Economy, Society and Culture''. He is a scholar of the information society, c ...

, Joana Conill, Amalia Cardenas and Sviatlana Hlebik (Universitat Oberta de Catalunya Press, 2012) *''Gender and Planning: A Reader'' - With Susan Fainstein (Rutgers University Press, 2005) *''Bridging the Digital Divide: Technology, Community, and Public Policy'' (Blackwell, 2002) *''Bootstrap Capital: Microenterprises and the American Poor'' (Brookings, 1999)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Servon, Lisa J. University of Pennsylvania faculty Living people Bryn Mawr College alumni American urban planners The New School faculty American women social scientists Year of birth missing (living people) American women academics 21st-century American women