Bonnie Johnson

Bonnie J. Johnson, PhD, AICP is an associate professor in the Urban Planning Program within the School of Public Affairs and Administration. Her research focuses on the profession of city planning and the roles and ethics of being a planner. Her contributions to the field include creation of the civic bureaucracy model, groundbreaking research on staff reports, and comparative studies of public service professions and their codes of ethics. Her interest in staff reports comes from having written so many as a practicing planner and having read so many as a member of the Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Commission.  Planners working for cities and counties all across the United States write staff reports every month advising planning commissions and city councils on whether rezonings, site plans, special use permits, and historic districts are good ideas for their communities. They are often long and not very interesting or easy to read.  Just as fashion designers can gain inspiration for ready-to-wear by creating fanciful avant-garde looks, Johnson will work with the Spencer Museum's staff and collection for inspiration to create avant-garde staff reports in hopes of motivating better day-to-day functioning.