Faculty News
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NewsGood morning, Please use this link to watch the UIUC School of Architecture, live! Convocation begins at 9:30AM on Sunday, May 18, 2025. Thanks, ISoA Administration
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NewsAkima Brackeen will deeply engage with their work in Architecture and collaborate with artists and scholars across disciplines during prestigious fellowship in Italy.
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NewsAssistant Professor Windy Zhao was awarded the Humanities Research Institute Summer Faculty Fellowship for "Course Development."
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The ACSA, the Associated of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, held the conference "Intersections Research Conference: New Housing Paradigms" in Austin, TX. The conference highlighted small-scale housing design interventions that address housing inequities.
Lynne Dearborn of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign was one of the organizers of a "Housing Studio Knowledge Sharing Workshop" along with Christina Bollo of the University of Oregon and Tom Collins of Ball State University. This workshop facilitated the exchange of pedagogical strategies among housing studio educators from North American institutions. The article also notes the creation of a new online platform called "Housing Design Teaching Network" to continue these conversations. This link is attached below.
The conference featured various speakers and initiatives including:
- Delta Design Build Workshop's work in rural Mississippi
- AIA Austin's Housing Advocacy Committee's policy reform
- Community First! Village tiny home development
- Collaborative housing studios focused on marginalized communities
- Historical architectural research on social housing
- Efforts by architects and educators to advance housing justice
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The article details a new transdisciplinary program at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign called "Place Making and Rural Tourism in China." This program is one of two projects funded by the Global South Community-Based Learning Programs grant, an initiative of the university's Vision 2030 Global Strategy funded by the Office of the Provost.
The program consists of three interdisciplinary courses:
- ARCH 572 (Architecture) taught by Windy Zhao
- ARTD 499 (Art & Design) taught by Molly Briggs
- RST 594/199 (Recreation, Sport, and Tourism) taught by Sharon Zou
The program invites Illinois students to collaborate on developing architectural plans, tourism strategies, wayfinding plans, and place-making activities for Xihu Village in Jiangxi Province, China. In February 2025, students traveled to China for a week-long study abroad opportunity, while others completed related campus-based activities.
Each course contributes differently to the program:
- ARCH 572 focuses on creating innovative planning and design proposals
- ARTD 499 develops wayfinding and memory-making plans
- RST 199/594 explores community-based tourism development principles
The program is rooted in community-engaged, human-centered design and planning, with the goal of helping create a sustainable future for the village's residents and visitors. Rather than imposing solutions, the professors aim to work with local stakeholders to develop sustainable approaches based on cultural identity and evolving needs.
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NewsAssociate Professor Didem Ekici will deliver the Richard Saivetz ‘69 Memorial Architectural Lecture at Brandeis University. Her lecture is titled "Fashioning Style: Gottfried Semper and Nineteenth-Century Textile Embellishments." 📅 Date: Thursday, March 20, 2025 🕑 Time: 2:20–3:40 PM 📍 Location: Mandel Center for the Humanities, Room 303, Brandeis University 🔹 Free and Open to the Public
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NewsThe School of Architecture is pleased to share that Assistant Professor Dr. Yazmín M. Crespo Claudio recently participated in the 113th College Art Association (CAA) Annual Conference in New York City. She presented on the panel “Space Art in the Anthropocene,” which explored the intersections of art, space exploration, and ecological transformations in the context of the Anthropocene. Professor Crespo Claudio’s paper, titled “en el radar: based-ground observations in Arecibo, Puerto Rico,” examined the Arecibo Observatory as a site of scientific knowledge production, infrastructural neglect, and geopolitical complexity in the Caribbean. Her work integrates architectural and cultural history, environmental concerns, and critical spatial practices to address broader questions of technology, territory, labor, and planetary futures. The panel took place on February 13th, 2025, and brought together scholars engaging with space-related themes in contemporary discourse. For more information about the conference, visit https://www.collegeart.org/
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NewsTo the ISoA Academic Community: It is a distinct honor to announce that the Executive Committee voted unanimously to support Prof. Emeritus Jeff Poss’ nomination to bestow upon Art Kaha the Illinois Medal of Architecture. This prestigious accolade has been awarded since 1981 to distinguished alumni of the Illinois School of Architecture, and it recognizes a lifetime of dedication and excellence. Past recipients include Jeanne Gang (2024), Ralph Johnson (2022), Dina Griffin (2021), Carol Ross-Barney (2019), Cesar Pelli (2008), Jack Baker and Dick Williams (2007), Temple Hoyne Buell (2007) and Max Abramovitz (1987). The ceremony will take place at the Krannert Art Museum m on Wednesday, April 2nd, at 6:30pm. We would love for you to join at 6:00pm for hors d'oeuvres. I look forward to seeing you at the event to recognize our distinguished colleague. Sincerely, Director Francisco Rodriguez-Suarez
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UIUC Career XPO Committee is excited to announce the release of the 2025 Career XPO Firm List!
Use this list to research firms, find the ones you are interested in, and prepare at least THREE questions for their work, office culture, etc! The Career XPO will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn in Champaign, IL, from 9AM - 3PM, with interviews to follow. Read more about it in the provided link! -
NewsThe Illinois School of Architecture is proud to announce two faculty members, one staff, and one alum winners of the 2025 Architectural Education Award! Illinois boasts the most award winners of all represented schools. Read more at ASCA: Winners Announced for 2025 Architectural Education awards. Congratulations to:
- Joseph Altshuler (Assistant Professor)
- Akima Brackeen (Assistant Professor)
- La Tanya Cobb (Associate Director of Undergraduate Student Services)
- Mark Pearson (Alumus)
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NewsProfessor Randy Deutsch published an article in Common Edge about his experience teaching AI to architecture undergraduate students.
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NewsIn an article released today from the Illinois News Bureau, professor Kathryn Holliday lends her expertise to the exciting story of the completion of the Notre-Dame restoration.
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NewsAssistant Professor Benjamin A. Bross has been invited to speak on the Mining Town of El Triunfo, Baja California Sur, at Penn State College of Arts and Architecture. The lecture will be held in "Hamer Center for Community Design" on Tuesday, December 10, 2024; 12pm - 1pm.
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NewsDr. Yazmín M. Crespo Claudio is speaking at Harvard University's "Symposium in Honor of Giuliana Bruno: With Keynotes by Isaac Julien and Emanuele Coccia" this Saturday, November 23rd, 2024. The Symposium brings together scholars and artists at the forefront of visual culture and design to honor Giuliana Bruno’s groundbreaking career. Her research has explored the intersections of visual arts, architecture, film, and media, providing innovative insights into how we perceive and engage with space. Bruno is the Emmet Blakeney Gleason Professor of Visual and Environmental Studies, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and a GSD Faculty Affiliate. My presentation, Atmospheric Thinking and Sentipensar, will be part of Panel 2: Sensing Place, Thinking Space. This event is co-presented by the Department of Art, Film, and Visual Studies, the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and the Department of History of Art and Architecture. Learn more about this exciting event, and watch it live, from the link below!
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NewsWe are proud to introduce a new video highlighting our Chicago / ABC Studio!
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NewsIn an article released this week by USA Today, Architecture professor Lynne Dearborn weighs in on the best cities for the middle class.
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NewsWe are excited to announce the Barcelona Study Abroad 2025-2026 program! For those interested in this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Program Director Alejandro Lapunzina will host an Orientation for all prospective students & family on November 23rd, 2024 @ 10AM via Zoom! Click here for the Zoom Orientation link! Ready to apply for the program now? (Application Deadline December 2nd) Undergraduate students click here!
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NewsPenny for Your Thoughts 10-10-24 Brian Barnhart hosts. In hour-one, Brian welcomes Kevin Hinders and Benjamin Bross, Professors in the School of Architecture, to discuss their new book on Memorial Stadium. “The University of Illinois Memorial Stadium the First 100 Years”. You need to go to this website then 10/10/24.
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NewsAssistant Professor Akima Brackeen has been selected as a University Design Research Fellows for the 2024-25 cycle of Exhibit Columbus.
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NewsWe are proud to recognize Assistant Professor Wei (Windy) Zhao's 2024 Environmental Design Research Associate Awards!