Zachary D. Wood, PhD

• Zachary D. Wood CV

Zachary D. Wood is an Assistant Professor in the Dept of Public Affairs and Nonprofit Leadership at Seattle University. He holds a PhD in Public Affairs from Rutgers University, with a specialization in Community Development.

Dr. Wood’s research and teaching foci center on issues of community development and urban social policy, applying critically-grounded frameworks to interrogate the structural power and resource arrangements that shape community access to power and decision-making, and its impacts on cities, neighborhoods, and people. His research has recently been published in a variety of book chapters and academic journals, and Dr. Wood frequently shares his work through invited lectures, media interviews, and public policy venues.

Dr. Wood is a passionate advocate for vibrant and collective expressions of democracy and social justice, with an eye toward centering the voices and lived experiences of people and groups consistently excluded from decision-making and economic structures.Additionally, he has more than a decade of experience working in the nonprofit sector in numerous leadership capacities, particularly in the areas of housing, homelessness and youth services, and he currently serves on the Board of Directors for The Mockingbird Society as well as the national youth advocacy organization, Youth Collaboratory.