Sumner Sharpe has an AB from Dartmouth College, a Master’s in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University followed by post-graduate study at the London School of Economics. Between 1968 and 1985 he was a member of the Urban Studies and Planning faculty before getting a Ph.D. in urban planning from the University of Washington.
Sharpe has been in the planning practice since 1958. In that time he has worked on the planning staff of city and regional agencies in Portland and Vancouver, Washington; as executive director for the Economic Opportunity Committee of Clark County, WA; Professor of Urban Studies and Planning and Planner-in-Residence at Portland State University. He has worked in various Portland based firms including as a partner in Cogan Sharpe Cogan, director of Pacific Rim Resources, and as a senior consultant for Parametrix.
He is the recipient of state and national awards from the American Planning Association, served as national president of the American Institute of Certified planners, and is a fellow of the American Institute of Certified Planners. In conjunction with Margaret Strachan he has established an endowed scholarship at PSU’s Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning. The purpose of the fund is to award scholarships to students who are at least 30 years old, who are pursuing careers as professional planners, and who have made the commitment to pursue a Master of Urban and Regional Planning degree at PSU.
From the guide to the Sumner Sharpe Collection, 1965-2009, 1989-2009, (Portland State University Library)
