Lunch on Fridays: CLExHAV Studio: Comparative Visions for Cleveland and Havana
David Jurca

"Proposed public plaza along Havana Bay, designed by KSU graduate student Ziyan Ye for the CLExHAV INDEX Studio."

Spend a lunch hour learning about the latest in art and design during these Friday lectures. Each lecture features a variety of artists and designers from around the world, including CIA faculty and visiting artists. This event is free and open to the public. Pizza and beverages will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis.

David Jurca is the Associate Director at Kent State's Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC), where his work integrates professional practice, applied research, and teaching. Responding to dynamic community needs, David advances the CUDC's various advocacy initiatives and spearheads efforts to develop effective techniques for public engagement. In 2013, David launched COLDSCAPES.org and co-edited the book "Coldscapes: Design Ideas for Winter Cities" to spur creative urbanism and livability year-round. He also co-founded Design Diversity, an initiative to promote people of color in architecture and design professions in Northeast Ohio. In support of Design Diversity’s mission, David leads Making Our Own Space (MOOS), a youth design program that trains students to envision and build their own public space improvements.

Appointed Assistant Professor of Urban Design in Kent State’s College of Architecture and Environmental Design, David teaches graduate studios, community charrette courses, and advises Master of Urban Design capstone projects. For the past two years, David has taught the International Design Exchange (INDEX) graduate studio at the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative, an urban design course focused on waterfront redevelopment sites in Cleveland and Havana, Cuba. The INDEX Studio was part of the 2017 Creative Fusion project, which included a collaboration between students at Kent State University and the Cleveland Institute of Art. David also taught the Designing Urban Green Spaces course for three years at Case Western Reserve University as a part-time lecturer in the SAGES program. David currently serves as Chair of the City of Cleveland’s Near West Design Review Committee and recently joined the Board of Directors for Canalway Partners. He has a Bachelor's degree in Architecture from The Ohio State University and received his Master of Architecture from Kent State University.

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