Image
The mission of The National Center for Suburban Studies at Hofstra University® is to advance the goals of suburban sustainability, social equity, and economic development through research, education, and public outreach.
In the News
Celebration of Suburban Diversity
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
This annual event raised funds for diversity-related research and scholarships. This event is dedicated to the ideal that we can be stronger for our differences if we come together to appreciate them.
About the Center
Mission
The National Center for Suburban Studies at Hofstra University® is a nonpartisan research institution dedicated to promoting the study of suburbia's problems, as well as its promise. Rooted in the laboratory of Long Island’s diverse and aging suburbs and in the shadows of the iconic Levittown, the National Center researches a broad range of issues at local, national, and international scales. The suburbs have emerged at the nexus of dynamic demographic, social, economic and environmental change in New York and throughout the world. We seek to understand the suburbs via academically rigorous research that encompasses the natural and social sciences and the humanities. The goal of the center is to identify, analyze, and solve the problems of suburbia, especially in areas of sustainability, social equity, and economic development.
Research Objectives Meet the Administration, Faculty, and Students
Programs
Student Research Showcase
The NCSS proudly supports student-led research that advances understanding of the social, environment, and economic issues shaping suburban communities.
Students in the Sustainability Studio course (SBLY 110) developed original research examining issues of sustainability, land use, mobility, health, and community well-being. This work was supported by the National Center for Suburban Studies and made possible through generous funding from Robert Catell.
Below are featured posters for the spring of 2025, representing interdisciplinary inquiry and the Center’s commitment to fostering experiential learning.
Hillary Flurkey
Hillary Flurkey’s research project sought to understand suburban residents’ attitudes toward public transportation, specifically examining how residents of Northport and East Northport feel about expanding the current public transportation system.
Trevor Johnson
Trevor Johnson’s research project examined the extent to which Hofstra students’ awareness of the environmental impacts of meat production influenced their meat consumption choices.
Benjamin Cortez
Benjamin Cortez’s research focuses on analyzing how YouTube users respond to different ways of communicating environmental information in order to understand which framing styles increase engagement and are most effective.
Contact Us
Social Media
Publications
The Storm, the Strife, and Everyday Life: Sea Changes in the Suburbs
Foreword by Larry Levy
Forging a New Housing Policy: Opportunity in the Wake of Crisis
Christopher Niedt and Marc Silver
