FAICP

Meet South Carolina’s 2026 Inductees to American Institute of Certified Planners College of Fellows

Election to the College of Fellows is one of the highest honors that the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) bestows upon a member.

Fellows of AICP are honored in recognition of the achievements of the planner as an individual, elevating the Fellow before the public and the profession as a model planner who has made significant contributions to planning and society. Fellowship is granted to planners who have been members of AICP and have achieved excellence in professional practice, teaching and mentoring, research, public and community service, and leadership.

Meet the Inductees

The FAICP Selection Committee recognized the careers of John and Susan as demonstrating sustained excellence, leadership, and impact consistent with the highest standards of the profession. Their record reflects strong professional accomplishment and a clear legacy of advancing planning practice and supporting the next generation of planners. Here is a few additional words about each of them:

Susan Britt, FAICP

Susan Britt, an insightful and creative leader, has guided the development of resilient, well-designed, and livable communities throughout her 45+ year career. Susan’s most significant legacy is leading groundbreaking growth management strategies and land conservation in one of the fastest-growing regions of the United States. She spearheaded the creation of pioneering policies to guide urban growth boundaries, annexation, and revenue strategies. Susan’s second most important legacy is her forward-thinking education and mentoring programs for councils, planning commission members, citizens, and planning professionals. She established state-level planning legislation, a multi-jurisdictional training program, and mentored young planners to become community planning leaders.

John Gaber, Ph.D., FAICP

Over the course of his nearly four decade career, John Gaber has simultaneously and successfully donned the planning career hats of professional practice, teaching, mentoring, leadership and service, and research. His efforts continue to have meaningful impact on students and faculty, planning practitioners, planning and allied organizations, service providers, and the many underserved and unheard communities most impacted by planning and policy decisions. The consistent and overarching theme of his work is to expand the collective “we” in planning practice to be more inclusive of community-based lived experiences in research, citizen participation, planning practice, and planning education.

SCAPA Fellows of AICP

Susan Britt, FAICP

Charles M. Compton, FAICP

Glenn Coyne, FAICP

Kara W. Drane, FAICP

John A. Gaber, Ph.D., FAICP

John R. Iacoangeli, FAICP

Craig S. Lewis, FAICP

Cheryl H. Matheny, FAICP

Joseph E. Muldrow, FAICP

Michelle E. Nance, FAICP

Barry C. Nocks, FAICP

William Wallace, FAICP

Nomination Eligibility and Criteria:

The minimum requirements for eligibility as a Fellow include:

• Member of AICP for at least 10 years.
• Member of AICP in good standing (dues paid, CM requirements up to date, and no ethical violations).
• Outstanding contribution to the profession over an extended period of time.

The primary criteria used to qualify for nomination as a Fellow:

• Exceptional and sustained leadership.
• Innovation and excellence.
• A legacy for their profession, community and society.
• Exceptional accomplishments in planning over the extent of their career.
• The significance of the nominee’s role in the work mentioned throughout the nomination.

To learn more about the College of Fellows and the nomination process, please go to the APA’s FAICP Nominations Toolkit website.

To review the 2025 SC-APA FAICP nomination policy and process, please click here.

To download the 2025 SC-APA FAICP nomination application, please click here.

Contact Lance Estep, AICP, FAICP Nomination Committee Chair at estepkl@cdmsmith.com with questions on the process.