Lawrence Wood

Areas of Expertise

• Digital Divide; ICTs and Development
• Rural and Regional Development
• E-Government
• Research Methods
• GIS and Telecommunications
• Policy Implementation

Dr. Wood is currently an Associate Professor in the School of Media Arts and Studies. He is also the Director of the Communication and Development Studies program, where he brings to the position over 15 years of academic, applied, and policy experience in development. Dr. Wood has published articles across a range of disciplines. His scholarship has focused on areas that include the digital divide; rural and regional development policy; indicators used to measure socioeconomic conditions; health disparities between urban and rural areas; grassroots level E-government; and discursive constructions of poverty in the media. His work has appeared in highly ranked journals that include Environment and Planning A; Government Information Quarterly; Learning, Media, and Technology; Public Administration Review; Regional Studies; and Telecommunications Policy. He has also written or co-authored policy reports for the Appalachian Regional Commission; the Center for Rural Pennsylvania; the Economic Development Administration; the Economic Policy Institute; and the United Nations Population Fund. Dr. Wood received his PhD in Geography from Penn State University, where he also earned master's degrees in Geography and in Agricultural, Environmental, and Regional Economics. His B.A is in liberal arts with an emphasis on history.
 

Selected Representative Work

Wood, L., and A. Howley. (2012). “Dividing at an Early Age: The Hidden Digital Divide in Ohio Elementary Schools.” Learning, Media, and Technology. 37(1): 20-39.

Wood, L. (2011). “Locating People, Places, and Things: Situating GIS in the Intelligent Network Landscape.” Global Media Journal. 11(19).

Wood, L., P. Bernt, and C.Ting. (2009). “Implementing Public Utility Commission Websites: Targeting Audiences, Missing Opportunities.” Public Administration Review. 69: 753-763.

Wood, L. (2008). “Rural Broadband: The Provider Matters.” Telecommunications Policy. 32(5): 326-339.

Wood, L. (2005). Trends in National and Regional Economic Distress: 1960-2000. Washington, DC: The Appalachian Regional Commission.
 

Education

Ph.D. Geography, Penn State University
M.S. Agricultural, Environmental, and Regional Economics, Penn State University
M.S. Geography, Penn State University
B.A. History, Franklin and Marshall College