Leigh T. Graham, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in Environmental Psychology as well as in the Department of Public Management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Her research focuses on the contentious politics of urban redevelopment, especially after disasters and in periods of crisis, with particular emphasis on the roles of race, class, and geography in shaping competing meanings and strategies of action.  Most recently, Leigh has examined the contested meanings of reconstruction in Rockaway, Queens after Superstorm Sandy.  Her work on community economic redevelopment in Lower Manhattan after September 11, 2011 is featured in Economic Development Quarterly. Her analysis of the struggle to preserve public housing in post-Katrina New Orleans is published in JAPA and Housing Policy Debate.  Leigh has also served as a consultant to foundations and non-profits on affordable housing and neighborhood redevelopment; she was the Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Allston Brighton Community Development Corporation in Boston, MA, prior to joining CUNY.  Leigh has a PhD in Urban Studies & Planning from MIT, and an MBA from NYU.