| Levin College of Public Affairs and Education | |
| Dean: | Jill Gordon, Ph.D. |
| Faculty: | 48[1] |
| Administrative Staff: | 39[2] |
| Students: | 645[3] |
| Undergrad: | 443 |
| Postgrad: | 202 |
| Country: | United States |
| Affiliations: | NASPAA[4] NACC[5] PAB [6] |
| Website: | https://levin.csuohio.edu/ |
The Levin College of Public Affairs and Education (Levin) is an accredited college that houses the Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs, School of Communication, as well as, the Department of Counseling, Administration, Supervision and Adult Learning, the Department of Criminology and Sociology, the Department of Educational Studies, Research and Technology, and the Department of Teacher Education.[7] Levin is a part of Cleveland State University located in Cleveland, Ohio. The Levin College offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees, as well as professional development programs. Its urban policy research centers and programs provide communities with decision-making tools to address their policy challenges. The Levin College is recognized for offering highly ranked programs in urban policy, local government management, nonprofit management, and public management and leadership.[8]
The Levin College is located on the Cleveland State University campus housed on the historic Euclid Avenue in The Playhouse Square District in downtown Cleveland.
In 2016, Dr. Roland V. Anglin, previously the senior advisor to the chancellor and director of the Joseph C. Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies at Rutgers University-Newark, was named dean.[9]
In 2024, Dr. Jill Gordon, previously the Assistant Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University, was named dean.[10]
In 1967, following the Hough riots and student protests on campus, Dr. Thomas F. Campbell and a group of Cleveland State faculty formed the Ad Hoc Committee on Urban Studies and called on the university to form an urban institute to "bring together faculty from a wide range of specializations to work on urban problems in an interdisciplinary setting, designed in particular to facilitate communication between specialists with common interests in urban problems — linking academic specialists with the political and economic leadership of a large metropolis – [including] a full range of undergraduate courses focusing on urban problems, particularly in the social sciences."[11]
The Institute of Urban Studies first offered classes in the fall of 1968 with the financial support of the Gund Foundation. The program was one of the first members of the Council of University Institutes of Urban Affairs, which became the Urban Affairs Association in 1981.
In 1969, Maxine Goodman Levin, founder of the Cleveland Landmarks Commission and the Cleveland Restoration Society, and a real estate developer, established the Albert A. Levin Chair of Urban Studies and Public Service in honor of her late husband.[12] It was the first endowed chair in the country to allow the chair holder to combine classroom teachings with public service to study and work at finding solutions to urban problems.[13] Cleveland State reorganized the Institute as the College of Urban Affairs consisting of a single department of Urban Studies in 1977. In 1989, the college was renamed the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, following the benefactor's gift of an endowment to support the college. In 2022, The Levin College of Public Affairs and Education, was renamed to honor the transformational philanthropic donations to the university from Mort Levin and the Levin family. The newly formed college brings together the previous Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, the College of Education, communication, and sociology and criminology.[14]
The 2022 U.S. News & World Report ranking of best public affairs graduate schools ranked the Levin College #2 in the Urban Policy specialty,[17] #16 in the Local Government Management specialty.,[18] #23 in the Nonprofit Management specialty,[19] and #40 in the Public Management and Leadership specialty.[20]
The Levin College graduate urban planning degree was highly ranked in both the economic development and community development specializations in the Planetizen Guide to Urban Planning Programs - 4th Edition in 2015.[21]
In the Planetizen Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs - 6th Edition in 2019, Cleveland State ranked 9th in Midwest Graduate Urban Planning Programs and 15th in Top Small Programs (Programs with fewer than 55 students enrolled on average over a three-year period).[22]
CSU APA is the Levin College student group affiliated with the Cleveland section of the Ohio chapter of the American Planning Association. A student from CSU APA serves as a member of the executive committee of APA Cleveland.[23] The student-run organization "strives to facilitate the exchange of ideas and thoughtful discussions, foster professional development, and create a sense of community among all students at Cleveland State University."[24]
CSU ICMA is the student chapter of the International City/County Management Association, and is also affiliated with the Ohio City/County Management Association (OCMA), "the leading organization in the State of Ohio promoting and developing excellence in local government."[25] The group partners with CSU APA to coordinate a speaker series, organize professional development events, host forums, and offer a shadowing program.https://www.csuohio.edu/urban/student-organizations/CSU-ICMA
Phi Alpha Alpha, "the Global Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration" has a chapter at Levin College.[26]
The CSU Student Environmental Movement is a group, "dedicated to making a green difference here on campus and the surrounding Cleveland area."
The Levin College houses research centers and programs that provide urban leaders with decision support tools, technical assistance, and data analysis educational services.[27]
The Levin College is also home to the additional research centers and programs including but not limited to:
The Levin College offers courses, workshops, and seminars for individuals and organizations seeking to improve their skills as urban leaders.http://www.csuohio.edu/urban/prof-dev/prof-dev The college also serves as the official Certified Public Manager® (CPM) program for the State of Ohio and offers comprehensive and nationally certified development programs for state and local government leaders and public administrators.