Planner-in-Residence: Mr. James Rhodes, AICP

Greenville Uptown District Field Trip

Full name: James F. Rhodes, AICP

Current title: Assistant County Manager for Planning & Environment, Pitt County, NC

Hometown: Battleboro, NC – Edgecombe County

Hobbies: Traveling to the NC coast & mountains, playing/watching/coaching basketball, spending time with family

Colleges attended and degrees: East Carolina University Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Master’s in Geography

First full-time job: Demographic Researcher, ECU School of Medicine

Specializations: Land Use Planning, Planning Legislation, Demography, Hazard Mitigation Planning, GIS/Mapping

APANC Professional Achievement Award

Years working at ECU: Planner-in-Residence (professor in practice) since 2019; 3 years with School of Medicine (part & full-time); 2.5 years as Grad Assistant

Courses Taught: Planner-in-Residence PLAN4065/6065: Land Use Planning, PLAN3032: Planning Legislation & Administration
Grad Assistant GEOG1000

Special Moments as a PIR: Attending Departmental graduation after completing the first class in Spring 2018 to support graduates & meet their families; Receiving requests from students to serve as a professional reference; Being advised that former students have accepted full-time employment; Successfully migrating courses to on-line instruction

With students during a Departmental Graduation Ceremony

Your roles as a PIR: To provide practical, real-world experiences as part of classroom instruction

Advice for students: Hone your communication skills, both written & verbal, to excel in the Planning profession.  Before graduation, take advantage of an internship to determine which Planning activities & programs you are most interested in.

What I love about the department/program: I have been affiliated with the DGPE for nearly 40 years and appreciate its history, faculty, graduates, and students.  I am very proud that ECU has one of the few accredited Planning Programs in the nation.