Mary Archibald received the 2024 APA-Outstanding Student Project Award

Mary Archibald’s project, “Housing Market Study and Affordable/Workforce Housing Strategic Vision for Beaufort County, NC” was chosen for the 2023-2024 American Planning Association-North Carolina Chapter’s Marvin Collins Planning Award for the Outstanding Student Project Award. This award recognizes high-quality student work that increases the understanding of the value of planning.

Partnering with Beaufort County, the ECU Office of Research, Economic Development, and Engagement helped the county understand its housing market through in-depth research on affordable housing. Mary Archibald conducted the research as a summer internship under the guidance of Professor Merrill Flood, Planner-in-Residence in the Community and Regional Planning program.

Read the report (PDF)

The Housing Market Study and Affordable/Workforce Housing Strategic Vision is a research project that provides a comprehensive evaluation of the housing challenges faced by the working population in Beaufort County. The research involved analyzing demographic data, housing market information, environmental conditions, and employment-related factors to identify the specific barriers to affordable housing for residents. The research involved exploring the unique characteristics and needs of the working population, such as age, household composition, income levels, and employment sectors driving the economy. Through examination of the local housing market and employment landscape, the research project generated evidence-based recommendations to guide policymakers, stakeholders, and housing advocates in developing targeted strategies and solutions to improve access to affordable housing for the workforce in Beaufort County. Work completed for Beaufort County has been shared with communities in the east as other ENC communities consider ways to address their loss of talent and economic vitality concerns.

Ms. Archibald presented this project at the 2024 Research and Creative Achievement Week (RCAW) symposium at East Carolina University on April 2, 2024, to inform the ECU community about the status of affordable housing in eastern NC county. Her efforts to disseminate the research findings became even more expensive. On April 10, 2024, she presented in the Economics & Society session at the International Global Partners in Education conference. This project has also been selected to present at the American Planning Association-North Carolina Chapter conference in October 2024.

Mary Archibald also completed two capstone projects: (1) Hilton Garden Inn Impact Assessment in Greenville, NC (Fall 23, Client: City of Greenville, NC). She served as the team captain for the project with Jordan Kearney and Noah Mills. (2) McNair Heights Housing Development: Building Community and Opportunity (Spring 24, Client: Habitat for Humanity of Goldsboro-Wayne, Inc).

Mary Archibald graduated in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Science in Community and Regional Planning. After completing her internship, she is an Economic Development Projects Coordinator at the Mid-East Commission. Cheers to Mary Archibald for a job well done!