Vaidehi Mody

Vaidehi Mody is a Visiting Assistant Professor at the Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment at Pratt Institute. An urbanist, specializing in planning, program development, and policy innovation, Vaidehi currently serves as a Senior Planning Consultant at the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). Leading the agency’s Connected Communities program, she actively implements public-private partnerships, participatory design practices, and oversees impactful projects that enhance the quality of life of public-housing communities. She manages strategic partnerships with city agencies, nonprofits and the private sector, facilitating grants towards innovative and critical transformation of the built environment.

Since 2021, Vaidehi engages as an instructor and advisor with the ARCScholars program- a initiative focused on empowering public housing youth and undergraduate architecture students. She imparts engagement-centric design skills, guiding cohorts through hands-on case studies and cultivate practical expertise in the field. Additionally, she also supports program and curriculum development and recruits industry experts for mentorship.

Prior to her work at NYCHA, she has consulted for local urban design advocacies and planned programming for public plazas. With a focus on bridging the gap between policy, community, and planning, Vaidehi is dedicated to fostering inclusive and resilient urban environments.

M.S. in Urban Placemaking and Management, Pratt Institute
M.S. in Project Management, Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
B. Arch, Indian Education Society’s College of Architecture