Jordana Maisel, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University at Buffalo (UB), where she also serves as Director of the nationally recognized Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access (IDEA Center). With more than 20 years of experience designing and conducting experimental research in laboratory and field settings, Dr. Maisel has established a successful research program focused on the relationship between the built environment and the physical, social, and psychological well-being of older adults and people with disabilities. Her work examines how universal and inclusive design can improve access, participation, health, independence, and quality of life across diverse populations and environments.

Dr. Maisel is the Principal Investigator of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Universal Design Applications (RERC-UDA), a federally funded, multi-year research center supported by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), and a three-year NIDILRR-funded field-initiated project, “Addressing the Impacts of Severe Weather on People with Disabilities.” She previously served as Co-Principal Investigator of the RERC on Universal Design and the Built Environment (RERC-UD) and the RERC on Accessible Public Transportation (RERC-APT) and has served as PI or Co-PI on numerous research and demonstration projects funded by NIDILRR, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Across these projects, she has led interdisciplinary teams and managed complex federally funded research programs, including staffing, research protections, budgets, partnerships, and dissemination.

Her research spans inclusive design standards and guidelines, accessible and inclusive transportation, street and community infrastructure, accessible housing policy, post-occupancy evaluation, and climate resilience for vulnerable populations. A central focus of her work is translating empirical research into practical tools, standards, policies, and design strategies that can be implemented by designers, planners, policymakers, industry, and communities. Through the IDEA Center, she leads interdisciplinary research, education, consulting, and professional training that connect evidence-based approaches to inclusive design with real-world applications.

Dr. Maisel has authored and co-authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, reports, and professional resources and has contributed to several foundational works in universal and inclusive design, including the Goals of Universal Design, Universal Design: Creating Inclusive Environments (Steinfeld & Maisel, 2012), Accessible Public Transportation (2018), and Inclusive Design: Implementation and Evaluation (2018). Her research program has been recognized through the University at Buffalo Exceptional Scholar Young Investigator Award. She is also active in professional service, including mentoring, outreach, training, peer review, and engagement with community and professional stakeholders.

As Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Dr. Maisel provides leadership on academic programs, curriculum development, faculty affairs, and strategic academic initiatives across the School of Architecture and Planning. In this role, she is particularly interested in developing interdisciplinary educational opportunities and preparing students to address emerging challenges at the intersection of design, technology, health, sustainability, and social change.

Across her research, teaching, professional service, and academic leadership, Dr. Maisel is committed to connecting scholarship with practice and advancing environments that enable more people to live, work, learn, travel, and participate fully in their communities.