Trained as an urban historian, Aaron Shkuda received his PhD from the University of Chicago where his research focused on the role of the arts in urban development. He is the author of The Lofts of Soho: Gentrification, Art, and Industry in New York, 1950–1980 (University of Chicago Press, April 2016). Aaron has published articles on subjects ranging from arts-focused retail districts to the architecture and planning behind Battery Park City. He has worked to bring together scholars in humanistic disciplines with architects and urban planners throughout his career. As an ACLS New Faculty Fellow at Carnegie Mellon University, Aaron taught classes in architecture, fine arts, and history while organizing a journal series and panel presentations on cities featuring scholars across the disciplines. He also launched Stanford University’s ITALIC (Immersion in the Arts: Living in Culture) program, a residentially-based arts and humanities immersion program for undergraduates