METRANS welcomes Student Assistant Wenhao Zhang to the Student Assistant team. As a new member of the METRANS family, Wenhao’s responsibilities include managing student and professional profiles for the Mentor-Mentee Program, assisting with METRANS-associated events and activities at USC, and assistance with transportation-related research assignments for both upcoming textbooks and commissioned white papers.

Wenhao is a second-year MPL student in the USC Price School of Public Policy with a concentration in Preservation and Design of the Built Environment. Prior to studying at USC, he obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Chamapign. It was through his undergraduate education that Wenhao acquired the skills and knowledge essential to becoming an urban planner while developing especial interests in urban design and transportation planning. 

Having lived in the U.S. for many years, Wenhao has familiarized himself with the American culture. He is interested in deepening mutual understanding between China and the United States, and also enjoys travelling and getting a taste of different cultures around the globe. The accompanying photo was taken at a Paris subway station.  Wenhao studied abroad in Arles, France in 2013 and is trilingual in English, Chinese, and French.