Natalie Cheng

Hometown: San Francisco/Burlingame, CA
Undergraduate Degree: Mount Holyoke College, B.A., History and Asian Studies, 2007
Favorite Cities: San Francisco, Taipei, and Philadelphia
Planning Concentration: Community and Economic Development

How did you get interested in planning?

In my senior year at Mount Holyoke, I took a politics course called Visions of the City with my favorite professor. I was fascinated by the theory of planning cities but realized that the theory of it is only as useful as what a person does with it.

 What kind of work experience do you have?

In my year off between schools, I worked for Emerge America, a non‐profit organization that sets up affiliates in different states, which train Democratic women to run for office. In other words, I had very little experience in planning but Penn is definitely the place to learn the essentials to becoming a planner.

Why did you choose Penn to study city planning?

The program itself is extremely practical and has been shaped by student feedback and response. PennPlanning had a very organized Open House and everyone I met, particularly the current students, was extremely helpful and nice. There is definitely something to be said about having nice classmates because you'll be working with the same people in group projects during a majority of your time in the program. It was great to hear students talk about being push and challenged in all of their classes but also really enjoying all of it.

What has been your favorite class so far?

WORKSHOP. I can now say that I have "planned" something and I have a pretty book to show for it.

Are you involved in any planning related activities?

Student Planning Association, PennDesign Student Council, Beaux Arts Ball Committee

What are your career ambitions?

PennPlanning is going to teach me what I will or won't actually want to do in my future career. In general, however, my goal is to work with and help people who live in ethnic communities. Basically, I can either become a community organizer or a mayor of a small town in Alaska.