By Madeline Reinsel

Tiffani Vasco has always wanted to help people, and that goal steered her toward a destination she didn’t initially expect: urban planning.

Vasco graduates this spring with a bachelor’s degree from the urban and regional studies program in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. She first took a human geography class in high school, and after attending Virginia Peninsula Community College, she transferred to Virginia Commonwealth University in fall 2023 and dove into a course of study that matched her mindset.

“I found the major of urban and regional planning, which is something I hadn’t heard of before,” Vasco said. “I’m still helping people, I’m still working with the community. I’m working on larger-scale macro-level changes, rather than with individuals one on one.”

Since starting at VCU, Vasco has stood out as a dedicated student, said Shruti Syal, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Wilder School.

“Tiffani is goal-driven, perceptive, detail-oriented, pertinent and consistent – a rare mix of qualities in my experience,” said Syal, whose Urban Green Equity and Resilience Project team includes Vasco and is creating a green infrastructure and social network map for the Richmond region. “I’ve been struck by how quickly she picks up on suggestions and guidance, and how far she runs with that to learn even more than I hoped to teach her.”

Vasco said she is most proud of her involvement in the Solar Decathalon, recently renamed BuildingsNEXT, a U.S. Department of Energy competition in which teams of college students compete to either design or build a home powered by renewable energy.

In 2024, Vasco and other VCU students worked with the Maggie Walker Community Land Trust to design a net-zero home and became finalists in their category. This year, the team returned to the competition finals in Golden, Colorado, with a design created for client Happily Natural Day, a Richmond-based nonprofit that runs several community farms in the area.

For Vasco, the Solar Decathalon has been a defining experience at VCU.

“Honestly, I think about it every day,” she said. “It was one of the most rewarding academic experiences that I’ve had to date.”

Vasco has also worked with Wilder School associate professor Damian Pitt, Ph.D., on his research on the impact of the data center industry in Virginia.

“I could talk your ear off about data centers. I could also talk your ear off about housing and insulation,” Vasco said. “I have a lot of random passions.”

Her accomplishments have not gone unrecognized. Vasco has been awarded multiple scholarships from the Wilder School, as well as the New Building Institute’s NextGen fellowship. This year, Vasco received the school’s Marijean Hawthorn Excellence in Writing award.

Vasco is especially appreciative of her supportive mentors, who have pushed her to pursue her many academic interests.

“Nobody said no. Nobody said, that’s not what you need to be focusing on,” Vasco said. “People have helped, rather than discouraged me or held me back.”