Dr. Kurban earned PhD degree in Economics from University of Illinois at Chicago in 1999. Prior to joining Howard University in August 2001, he had worked as a Research Assistant Professor at Center for Urban Economic Development affiliated with University of Illinois at Chicago. Dr. Kurban’s research papers (with Joseph Persky) on Urban Sprawl and Spatial Distribution of Federal Funds have been published by the Brookings Institution and Regional Science and Urban Economics. He presented his research on urban clusters, earnings inequality, and local economic development programmes in professional and academic conferences. His current research is concentrated on intra-metropolitan growth, gravity models, and economics of electrical power.