College of Architecture and Urban Studies | School of Public and International Affairs

Associate Chair and Associate Professor, Undergraduate Programs Coordinator 209 Architecture Annex 540-231-7503 dzahm@vt.edu

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ACADEMIC BIOGRAPHY

Education

• Ph.D. in Land Use Planning (State University of New York, Syracuse, 1986)
• Master of Planning (University of Virginia, 1982)
• B.S. in Environmental Resource Management (Allegheny College, 1980)

Areas of Specialization

• Land use planning
• Comprehensive planning
• Neighborhood revitalization
• Crime prevention

Courses Taught and Programs

• Public Issues in an Urban Society
• Urban and Regional Planning Studio
• Land Use Planning

Personal Statement

Dr. Zahm is internationally recognized for her work in crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED). She heads the College of Architecture and Urban Studies CPTED team, which offers crime prevention training and technical assistance services to local communities and organizations. The team's work has focused on safety at Virginia's hospitals and schools, and this year deals with crime prevention in single- and multi-family housing. Dr. Zahm has also worked with the National Crime Prevention Council, the National Crime Prevention Institute, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the American Institute of Architects, the Society for Environmental Graphic Design, and the Council of Educational Facility Planners International on a variety of programs related to crime prevention.

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PUBLICATIONS

• Examining the State-of-the-Art of Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design. Accepted for publication by the Journal of Planning Education and Research, 1998.
• Why Protecting the Public Health, Safety and General Welfare Won't Protect Us From Crime. In Marcus Felson and Richard B. Peiser (Eds.), Reducing Crime Through Real Estate Development and Management. Washington, DC: Urban Land Institute, 1998, pp. 71-89.
• Designing Safer Neighborhoods: A Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design Handbook (81 pages). Washington, DC: National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), July 1997.
• Smarter, Stronger, Safer: Improving Residential Security. Journal of Urban Technology, 3, 3, pp. 71-82.
• Convenience Store Robberies in Selected Metropolitan Areas: Employee Injury, by Amandus, H.E., Zahm, D., et al., Journal of Occupational and Environmnetal Medicine, v. 38, n. 7, pp. 714-720
• Can Environmental Design Really Reduce Crime? (Prospects). Landscape Architecture, February 1995.
• Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design with Timothy D. Crowe. In Land Development, Fall 1994, National Association of Home Builders.
• Proceedings of the International Seminar on Environmental Criminology and Crime Analysis (editor), November 1994.
• Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design, Opportunity Theory and Rational Choice Models with C.R. Jeffery. In R.G. Clarke and M. Felson (eds.), Advances in Criminological Theory, 1993.
• Safe Neighorborhoods: The Planner's Role in Crime Prevention. Florida Planning, 9,5,1 and 4. Crime Prevention and Drug Elimination Program: Final Report. Florida State University School of Criminology (for the Albany, Georgia, Housing Authority),1992.