Dr. Christopher Tyler Burks

urban policy scholar
studying cities, inequality, and governance

  • I am an assistant professor of public administration at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Public Affairs teaching courses in Urban Management (PADM 7335), Ethics in Public Administration (PADM 7340), State Administration and Reform (PADM 7339), Public Policy Analysis I (PADM 7362), and Public Policy Analysis II (PADM 7363) in the Master of Public Administration (MPA) and Nonprofit Management Certificate programs.. Learn about my teaching.

  • I conduct research with Dr. Derek Hyra at the Metropolitan Policy Center in American University in Washington, D.C. I built a panel dataset of U.S. city council districts (GIS shapefiles) and their representatives in the largest 40 Black population cities for the years 2000-2010. I built this dataset to examine the effects of gentrification on racial representation in local government. I presented my preliminary findings to the Gentrification and Political Representation Conference at University of Houston Political Science Department on May 6, 2022. I am drafting the article for submission to Urban Affairs Review.

  • Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform advocates for efficient and equitable government. Help us fund research briefs examining how the Alabama Constitution impacts the well being of our citizens. This research will be conducted by the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA).

  • I serve on the University of Alabama at Birmingham College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Board planning for alumni events and fundraising for scholarships. I serve on the bylaws and alumni network awareness committees.

  • Fundraising and event planning for the Alabama Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA). See what we accomplished during my term as president as recapped in this PA Times article.

  • Urban Analysis is a management consulting firm for changemaking through policy, planning, and politics. I founded Urban Analysis to support our public and civic leaders in their charge to build smart, sustainable, and inclusive cities and metropolitan regions.

I am an assistant professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Public Affairs where I teach in the public administration, nonprofit management, and political science programs.

My research focuses on urban policy and regional governance for equitable and sustainable development. I’m from Birmingham, Alabama where I have interviewed 162 leaders in government, business, and nonprofit organizations for my book project on race and regional governance in Greater Birmingham and metropolitan America.

I hold a doctorate in public administration and policy from American University in Washington, D.C. and a master of public administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

I founded Urban Analysis, a consulting firm for changemaking through policy, planning, and politics. I’m proud of my transportation policy work: I assisted Chief Planner Tim Gambrel in the development of Birmingham’s Complete Streets Ordinance, and I worked for City Councilor Darrell O’Quinn as a policy analyst on many projects, such as writing the request for proposals for the public ridesharing service Birmingham On-Demand. I also served on the Birmingham Planning Commission supporting zoning reforms for missing middle housing and the replacement of parking minimums with transportation demand management.

You can call me Chris

As a community engaged researcher in public and urban affairs, I’m always looking for new partners in public service.

Let me know how I can help!

Race and Regional Governance in Metropolitan Birmingham

I am writing a book that explains how to build metropolitan capacity for problem solving in the United States. This work advances a new perspective on regional partnerships that integrates theories of collaborative governance and urban regimes within the context of racism in America.

I analyze over 200 years of political development in Birmingham, Jefferson County, and Alabama. Then I compare these politics with other metros in America, revealing that Birmingham is not an outlier as many assume but rather emblematic of America’s metropolitan disjunction—a pattern of regional development following suburban sprawl, political fragmentation, and municipal stratification.

Importantly, this research shows how institutional racism has shaped the structure of general-purpose governments, the function of special-purpose governments, and the collaboration among councils of governments. Finally, I make policy recommendations to shift the trajectory of political development toward integrative governance and regional democracy.

Topographical map of metropolitan Birmingham, Alabama. A mountain stands between the City of Birmingham and its most affluent suburbs, separating the lives of many White and Black people in the region.

This dot density map illustrates the racial segregation of metropolitan Birmingham by city boundaries with the most recent data from the American Community Survey (ACS). Each dot represents about 22 people. Orange dots represent the Black population in Birmingham and the other early settlements of Jones Valley. Blue dots represent the White population that lives “over the mountain,” along Interstate 65 and Highways 31 and 280 going south into Shelby County. Throughout the 20th century, and especially during the civil rights movement and court-ordered desegregation, Birmingham’s White population created new suburbs, moving over the mountain and around the central city, thereby fragmenting the region by race and class.

Teaching at
UA Little Rock

I am a assistant professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Public Affairs. I teach in the public administration, nonprofit management, and political science programs. My courses include:

  • Public Policy Analysis I (PADM 7362)

  • Public Policy Analysis II (PADM 7363)

  • Leadership & Public Management (POLS/PADM 3331)

  • Public Organization Theory (PADM 7303)

  • Ethics in Public Administration (PADM 7340)

  • State Administration & Reform (PADM 7339)

  • Urban Management (PADM 7335)

Founders’ Fellow (2019), American Society for Public Administration (ASPA). Presenting my findings from a national difference-in-differences analysis of the per-pupil revenue impact of school district secession on the district left behind. After a secession, the school district left behind saw an average decline in per-pupil revenue by over $1,000.

Supporting Inclusive Excellence at American University

I am motivated by public service and committed to servant leadership, so I was thrilled to join four enterprising doctoral students at American University in 2019 to organize the PhD Student Committee for Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. We are grateful for the help of our Faculty Advisor Ken Meier. I was honored to be elected as our third chair during the 2021-22 term.

We launched our Pathways to PhD program in 2022. Our mission is to support prospective students from underrepresented backgrounds through mentorship in the PhD application process. Applicants are paired with mentors, a current PhD student or faculty member, to receive feedback on their CV and personal statement.

I continue to support the DEI Committee’s mission for diversity, equity, and inclusion at my alma mater. As an alumni advisor, I assist projects and provide institutional knowledge for how to get things done. I am here to support the next cohort of scholars committed to social equity in public administration and the academy.

Illuminating Shuttlesworth (2022) mural in the Birmingham Museum of Art by Rico Gatson. Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth had a fire you can’t put out. His passion for justice drove him to lead the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights and to co-found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. His nonviolent direct action challenged the segregation of Jim Crow. The success of the national civil rights movement pivoted on the Birmingham campaign, providing the impetus for the Second Reconstruction in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. As Shuttlesworth remarked, “But for Birmingham, we would not be here today.”

Respect Diversity

The DEI Committee respects diversity. We are grateful to share experiences across differences. Diversity is inclusive of multiple identities, affiliations, and experiences, such as but not limited to: race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, class (for example, education, profession, income, and wealth), language and dialect, nationality and region, age, ability, politics, and religion.

Value Equity

The committee’s respect for diversity commits us to act on social equity. Equity is the path to meaningful equality. Its first steps begin with accessibility and the supports to take advantage of opportunity. Past and present discrimination needs to be repaired through the redistribution of resources and through social healing to achieve justice as fairness.

Practice Inclusion

The committee’s respect for diversity and commitment to social equity leads us, not merely to tolerate differences, but to value and welcome the experiences and perspectives that each person brings to the table. We aim to create a place and culture of belonging and sharing. This inclusive culture accelerates our learning while fostering mutuality and collegiality.

Black Lives Matter (2020) street art installation in Birmingham, AL on 1st Avenue South by Railroad Park. Inspired by the BLM movement in Washington, D.C., Cara McClure with BLM Birmingham and local mural artist Shawn Fitzpatrick worked with Mayor Randall Woodfin to bring together the community art project.

In the Media

My interview with journalist Heather Gann was featured on the cover of The Birmingham Lede on April 30, 2023 and republished on AL.com.