Three URP Faculty Receive Promotions
Three faculty members from the University of Florida Department of Urban and Regional Planning have been promoted by the UF Board of Trustees during their June 2026 meeting:
Dr. Laura Dedenbach, AICP, has been promoted to Senior Lecturer/Instructional Associate Professor. She specializes in land use and comprehensive planning, land use compatibility, urban resilience, neighborhood planning, and planning education. Effective July 1, 2026, she will also take on the roles of Department Chair and Associate Director of the UF School of Landscape Architecture and Planning.
Dr. Hal Knowles has been promoted to Senior Lecturer/Instructional Associate Professor. Dr. Knowles focuses on sustainability and the built environment, specializing in how urban design can improve human and community health. His work explores the intersection of the natural world and urban spaces, with an emphasis on the transition toward sustainable and resilient cities.
Dr. Emre Tepe has been granted tenure and promoted to Associate Professor. His research focuses on the nexus between local and regional economic development and land use change, as well as the development of planning and policy support systems. His areas of expertise also include urban analytics, land use change, spatio-temporal modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and big data.