Jordan McAlister is a human geographer with interests in the built environment, historical geography, and historic preservation. A native of Texas, he has long taken an interest in the cultural and regional geographies of North America, including the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains, the Prairie Provinces, the American Southeast, and the Midwest. He has a passion for places, life-long learning, and travel, and loves discussing the world with students and those interested in geography. His research focuses on the preservation of civic architecture, New Deal artwork, and the role human landscapes play in conceptions of place.
Jordan recently joined the Department of Geography & Geographic Information Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as a professor and an undergraduate advisor. We recently caught up with Jordan about why he’s excited to join the department and what he’s most looking forward to.