Elizabeth Wentz

Elizabeth Wentz is Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate College and a professor in the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning at Arizona State University. She previously served as Dean of Social Sciences in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences from 2015 to 2020, Director of the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning from 2013 to 2015, Interim Director of the School of Transborder Studies from 2018 to 2019, and Associate Director of the Institute for Social Science Research from 2014 to 2019. Joining Arizona State University in 1997 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography, she advanced to Associate Professor in 2004 and full Professor in 2012. Wentz holds a Ph.D. in Geography from Pennsylvania State University (1997), an M.A. in Geography from The Ohio State University (1989), and a B.S. in Mathematics from The Ohio State University (1987). During her tenure as director of the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, she oversaw the launch of a pioneering bachelor's degree in geographic information science, one of the first in the United States. She also served as Director of the Knowledge Exchange for Resilience from 2018 to 2024 and is a Senior Global Futures Scientist.

Her research focuses on the design, implementation, and evaluation of geographic technologies, including geographic information systems, remote sensing, and spatial analysis, to examine urban environments and human-environment interactions. Wentz authored the book 'How to Design, Write, and Present a Successful Dissertation Proposal' (2014). Selected publications include 'Six fundamental aspects for conceptualizing multidimensional urban form: A spatial mapping perspective' (Landscape and Urban Planning, 2018), 'Trends in urban land expansion, density, and land transitions from 1970 to 2010: a global synthesis' (Environmental Research Letters, 2020), 'Urban land expansion: the role of population and economic growth for 300+ cities' (npj Urban Sustainability, 2022), and 'Evaluating Geodesign for Community-Based Tribal Planning: The Role of Planners in Marginalized Communities' (Journal of the American Planning Association, 2021). She has contributed to decision tools like WaterSim for local water managers and participated in 15 research projects on topics such as urban sustainability and climate adaptation. Wentz received the Fellow of the Association of American Geographers (2020), ASU Graduate College Outstanding Doctoral Mentoring Award (2017), Faculty Women's Association Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award (2019), and delivered the Waldo Tobler Lecture (2015). She served as President of the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (2015-2016).

Professional Email: wentz@asu.edu