ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Keaton Wetzel '11
Keaton Wetzel ’11 is a New York City–based urban planner who partners with transit agencies and cities across the country to design and improve their transit networks.
Keaton credits Burroughs with sparking his early civic-mindedness and affirming his interest in improving America’s cities. Each summer of high school, he volunteered with Aim High St. Louis, the on-campus tuition-free enrichment program for local middle schoolers from some of the region’s lowest-income school districts. There he was mentored by Burroughs teachers Daniel Harris (DEIE, Athletics) and Kevin McKone (Mathematics, retired), who led the program. In his senior year, Jamie Wagner’s urban studies course opened his eyes to the field of urban planning.
He built on this foundation at Washington University in St. Louis, majoring in urban studies and political science, and at Cornell University, where he received a master’s degree in urban planning. He is celebrating his eighth anniversary of joining Nelson\Nygaard, an urban planning consultancy, where he is currently a principal.
As an urban planner, Keaton’s work is both “left brain” and “right brain”: figuring out how to make streets and transit networks function better, while building the public and political support needed to put those ideas into practice. One of his proudest recent accomplishments is redesigning the transit network in Philadelphia; once implemented, the number of frequent routes — those coming every 15 minutes or better, seven days a week — will increase by 30%, and an estimated 1.1 million more people will be within a 10-minute walk of frequent bus service.
Keaton feels that his Burroughs education instilled in him a curiosity about others’ experiences and a desire to continually seek out new challenges:
“My teachers at Burroughs modeled an inquisitiveness about the world and showed me the satisfaction that comes from being a lifelong learner,” he says. “I am grateful for the lessons they imparted about remaining curious and open to new experiences.”
Keaton lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn, with his partner, Tyler. He enjoys connecting with Burroughs alumni, especially those in New York City or the urban planning field, and he encourages like-minded Bombers to reach out. Outside of work, Keaton and Tyler enjoy long bike rides to New York’s parks and beaches and weekend ski trips with friends.
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