ARCHITECTURE New York State | Q2 | June-July '22

ARCHITECTURE

NEW YORK STATE EDUCATION

J U N E - J U LY ‘ 2 2

The June - July issue focuses on education as it relates to the profession of architecture—from opportunities to expand the reach of exposing young students to STEM/STEAM professions by designing the spaces where they learn, offering a contest to build a structure out of spaghetti and marshmallows or providing mentorship, to focused undergraduate and graduate architecture programs and continuing education in New York State.

PAGE 2 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

Contents President’s Letter

4

Executive Vice President’s Letter

5

1

Full STEAM Ahead! The Pursuit for Elementary STEM/STEAM Design

2

AIA Staten Island’s Spaghetti – Marshmallow Contest – Building Future Architects 12

3

Mentoring High School Students About Careers in Architecture, Construction and Engineering Through the Ace Mentor Program 18

6

4

Rebuilding Buffalo on Active Hope

5

21st Century Thinking, Design Exploration and Delivery – The Master of Architecture at Rochester Institute Of Technology 26

6

Education From a Licensure & CE Lens

7

AIANYS Education Program Update

22

30

34

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 3

PRESIDENT’S LETTER As an architect, you commit yourself to a lifelong journey in pursuit of knowledge. Many of you were inspired to become an architect by seeing a relative in the industry; others may have been exposed to the profession through a program at school, an exhibit at a museum, or a teacher who recognized your talents and skill sets.

I spent the summer with my grandparents in Rossano, a town in the province of Cosenza, Calabria in southern Italy helping my grandfather in his wood shop. I was sitting on the balcony of their apartment, and when looking at the panorama of the town, I grabbed a piece of paper and started to draw the skyline. It was then that my grandfather looked at my sketch said, “You may want to become an architect.” With that recommendation, I went through middle school and high school nurturing my design skills, including working for a well-known small architecture firm in my home town where I was exposed to a variety of projects and applications.

I made a commitment to continuously learn through my program at the University of Florence, Facoltá di Architettura, my experience at firms working under architects, and in preparing to take and ultimately pass the Architect Registration Examination® (ARE®). I continue to commit myself to lifelong learning through my volunteerism with AIA Eastern New York and AIA New York State respectively, holding various positions throughout the years and working with other leaders within the association. And of course, my ongoing learning through the continuing education required to keep my registration current.

Being back at the AIA National Conference in person this year provided me with not only the continuing education credits I need, it also provided me with the opportunity to network, learn and share with other leaders, colleagues, presenters and members. After a two-year hiatus, the energy, excitement and enthusiasm I experienced while there was contagious and stronger than ever.

I came back with a revitalized desire to learn and share. Learning something new, whether it be about oneself, the built environment, a shared history, a new way of being, expands the mind and opens the pathway to realize one’s true human potential for greater learning.

I am excited to share this issue that focuses on education with you. Colleagues and members from firms, chapters, associations, universities and the New York State Office of the Professions have taken the time to share some valuable information about learning— from opportunities to expose young students to STEM/STEAM professions by designing the spaces where they learn, offering a contest to build a structure out of spaghetti and marshmallows or providing mentorship, to focused undergraduate and graduate architecture programs, and continuing education in New York State. I hope you enjoy and learn something new from this issue.

Sincerely,

Pasquale Marchese, AIA 2022 President | AIA New York State

PAGE 4 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT’S LETTER Congratulations, Your Education is Now Completed It seems that everyone in our neighborhood is graduating at some level. The children down the street are moving up to middle school; several neighbors have college grads and excitedly we have a graduate from an architectural program.

For the last few months, I have been on a search for just the right card to honor these wonderful educational achievements. To my surprise during a late night search, I came across a card that echoed the title of this letter, “your education is now completed.” That phrase started a cacophony of thoughts about education, and how one cannot function at their highest level without ongoing education in some form or another. The opportunities to learn are all around us. At times, we can feel like we are being bombarded with new facts, but that’s the great part, we have so many choices on how to learn and be educated.

Merriam Webster has a great pop up that reads, “You’re never too cool to learn something new.”

They define education as “a body of knowledge acquired while being educated.” It’s amazing how the delivery of that body of knowledge has changed in the last few years. One can learn from some of the great academic institutions across the country; or tune in to a series of podcasts that can update us on the latest green, sustainable products. Gone are the days when web-based learning is reserved for those enrolled in formal academic programs. It has been more than a decade since my first online education experience occurred. It was a full 12 college credits that were asynchronous, and I wondered how it was going to work. It was successful, and it turned me into an online learning advocate without knowing the impact it would have years later.

One only has to go on Amazon to see the proliferation of new business books that are published daily, so learning has definitely not been stalled. My Kindle is full and last week my seventy second book was completed. It is labeled as my pandemic library and contains everything from developing new business systems to how to work in the virtual environment to engage members. Similar to you, my education is continuous and hopefully no one will ever congratulate me and tell me that my education is now finished.

Education, and more so the process of education, is what gets me excited, it always has.

To discover something new that our AIANYS education team, both staff specialists and volunteers, can mold into a series of sessions for the membership...there is nothing better than that. It is not unusual for our staff to receive an email about a professional development program that will benefit them and AIANYS. At times, they probably wonder where my expectations are, learning or doing.

The answer is simple, you can’t stay current without learning.

So please don’t expect a congratulations card from me letting you know how terrific it is that your education is now completed. But do know that in spirit, my congratulations go out to you every time you learn something new, and use it in developing an incredible design, no matter how small it is.

Have a great summer, stay safe.

Sincerely,

Georgi Ann Bailey, CAE, Hon. AIANYS Executive Vice President | AIA New York State

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 5

1

FULL STEAM AHEAD! THE PURSUIT FOR ELEMENTARY STEM/ STEAM DESIGN

by Michelle Fuller, Team Leader, King + King Architects

A

s architects and designers, we have the remarkable ability to build, transform, reimagine, and shape the built environment around us. For those of us operating more specifically in the realm of educational design, we play an even more vital role in helping institutions create spaces that inspire students, enhance learning, and support the programs and curriculum they are trying to implement.

Now more than ever, the focus on integrating STEM/STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts/Architecture, and Mathematics) into a school district’s educational instruction plan has skyrocketed. This is driven in part due to our increasingly high-tech, digitally focused world, coupled with the fact that the number of STEM-based careers have only continued to grow and will, without a doubt, play a major role in the future of work and innovation across the globe. Educators are realizing just how crucial it is for students to explore their creativity while also developing the critical thinking and problem-solving skills needed to prepare them for these types of STEM careers.

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

“Shape” reading nook detail.

PAGE 6 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

In the world of education, the original concept of “school” began very much like a box: one room with four walls, a floor, and a ceiling. Within these “boxes”, aka classrooms, traditional lecture-style instruction has dominated for decades. Yet just how much creativity and innovation can transpire staring at the same four walls day after day? The challenge that architects and designers face is getting educators to not only think

Media Center reading area.

outside the box in terms of teaching, but also how to break them quite literally out of the traditional 4-wall classroom and into more inspiring, flexible, and innovative spaces.

This idea of innovative teaching happening within inspiring spaces goes hand in hand when it comes to STEM, both in how this type of curriculum is taught, as well as the type of space it is taught in. The focus of STEM-based education revolves around developing problem solving and critical thinking skills.

The majority of class time encompasses active learning through hands-on exploration and team-based projects, integrating two or more subjects at one time, connecting to real-world problems and solutions, and using technology to facilitate learning–concepts that are vastly different from the traditional lecture-only style instruction.

THE EARLIER THE BETTER While many institutions have done a fantastic job of implementing an integrated STEM curriculum, they sometimes fall short with when to start incorporating it into their student’s education process. Often, the first exposure a student may have with any type of hands-on, project-based learning isn’t until middle school or even high school age! Yet studies have repeatedly shown that the earlier a student receives STEM education, the more likely they are to be interested in pursuing a STEM career long term. Young children are naturally curious and more willing to take risks and chances, qualities that are key when it comes to learning STEM-related concepts, and proof that no age is too young to start. By beginning to learn these core STEM concepts at an elementary level and continuing throughout their education, students will be better prepared to meet the demands of increasingly technologyfocused careers.

So, what does STEM/STEAM look like at an elementary level, and what can we as architects and designers of educational spaces do from a design perspective to support a school’s vision for 21st century learning at this early age? Within the next section we will explore a case study for a project where this STEM/STEAM concept in an Elementary School was successfully implemented.

Media Center: ample shelving for picture books, graphic novels, and display; a classroom instruction area; and a reading lounge with built-in “shape” nooks.

CENTRAL NEW YORK AT THE CENTER OF STEM At the center of the STEM-centric movement and a prime example of a school district focusing on STEM at an early elementary level is the East Syracuse Minoa (ESM) Central School District, located just on the outskirts of Syracuse, New York.

This district of 3,600+ students in Pre-K – Grade 12 values innovative learning that fosters curiosity in acquiring knowledge and skills that include critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity. ESM is one of only 11 schools in New York State designated as a comprehensive high school with numerous Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. They are also part of the CNY STEM Hub, a division of the Empire State STEM Learning Network. Having already well-established spaces to support STEM learning at the high school level, ESM first looked to King + King Architects to help redesign and transform their middle school to follow suit.

In 2013, Pine Grove Middle School underwent a full renovation and addition of 132,000 SF to transform the Grade 6 – 8 building to support the school’s mission of 21st century learning.

In 2018, the district announced “Our Elementary Objective” Capital Improvement Project and passed a $49.8 million referendum that focused on instructional space improvements to enhance innovation and learning at the district’s K – Grade 5 elementary schools. Collaborating again with King + King Architects, the main goal of the project was to challenge the very idea of standard elementary education and create a dynamic and comprehensive learning experience for all students.

“Our Elementary Objective” was really the last piece of the puzzle in completing the continuum of innovative and collaborative 21st century STEM learning environments at ESM.

STEM/STEAM AT ITS CORE One of the elementary buildings that King + King focused on during the first phase of the capital improvement project was Woodland Elementary School. Constructed in 1968, this 60,000 SF building underwent a complete interior renovation and addition that transformed the once popular “open plan” con-

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 7

cept school into a purposefully designed, state-of-the-art 21st century learning environment. One of the main focuses in the redesign of Woodland Elementary was creating a central STEAM core, an area that would function as the hub of the school and the epicenter for collaborative, dynamic learning across multiple disciplines.

Band Room (left) and Music Room (right) with direct connection to the Collaborative Commons.

Art Room (left): encompassing a variety of storage for art supplies, paper, and portfolio slots; durable, mobile butcher block tables for flexibility; and direct connection to the Collaborative Commons as well as the adjacent Maker Space.

Woodland Elementary Floor Plan highlighting the new central STEAM core.

Maker Space (right): featuring casework with writeable whiteboard surfaces; a large 3-bay trough sink for messy projects; mobile furniture; and a direct connection to the Collaborative Commons.

These specialty rooms each feature dimmable LED lighting, acoustics, ample storage, and the technology needed to function effectively and flexibly for students. These connections not only promote cross-disciplinary collaboration, but also allow for different groups of students, multiple classrooms, and even entire grade levels to converge in one space, fostering teamwork in flexible learning environments. In addition to the STEAM core, the redesign of Woodland Elementary also features grade level “pods” of classrooms, either connected by operable walls or sliding doors to promote collaboration across entire grade levels, as well as flexible learning zones and corridor break out spaces for small groups and alternative learning possibilities.

Collaborative Commons: featuring large windows for natural light; a small platform/performance area; and flexible/mobile furniture. Doors connecting to the Band and Music rooms are shown beyond.

The once underutilized central courtyard was reconstructed into a 4,000 SF addition to house the Collaborative Commons, a multi-functional, double height space featuring large windows to bring in ample natural light; a raised platform area with motorized projection screen perfect for assemblies, presentations, or musical performances; and a variety of flexible seating and other mobile furniture to facilitate easy rearrangement of space.

The Commons is also directly connected to and surrounded by the Band and Music Rooms, Art Room, and Maker Space.

Though not directly connected to the Commons, the Media Center is also part of the STEAM core and can be accessed from both sides of the corridor as well as from the Maker Space.

PAGE 8 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

Woodland Elementary, as well as the entire ESM school district, has proven to be a pioneer of successfully implementing flexible, innovative, and tech-savvy spaces designed to support STEM/STEAM learning. If the goal for educational institutions is to cultivate self-reliant, logical thinkers, innovators, and inventors, then architects and designers should be working together with their districts to spearhead the movement of designing alternative educational environments conducive to this type of student-centered learning—and advocating for it as early as elementary school! l

Michelle Fuller is a Team Leader at King + King Architects, an architecture firm native to Syracuse and the oldest operating firm in New York state with a 154-year history of designing projects in the K-12, Higher Ed, Healthcare, and Commercial markets.

Michelle is a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY and earned her Bachelor of Architecture degree in 2014.

She has spent the majority of her career specializing in K-12 educational design, devoted to creating fun and inspiring spaces for students of all ages to learn and thrive in.

Throughout her professional career she has also been involved in a number of informative architecture, education, and STEM/ STEAM events around Central New York, helping middle and high school students learn more about the profession and other STEM careers and opportunities available in CNY. Some of these events include the CNY STEM Career Exploration sessions; PEB STEM Career X series; STEM Activity nights hosted at local CNY school districts; promoting and educating students about the architecture profession at high school and college career fairs around the state; participating in local portfolio reviews at Syracuse University; and participating as a panelist for the STEM Scholars Connection young professionals “How to Stand Out” discussion.

Michelle plans to continue championing innovative, forward thinking approaches to K-12 educational design and hopes to inspire the next generation of young designers to follow suit.

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 9

Collaborative Education increases student

engagement, learning retention and peer to peer communication. Students build their important life skills when working together as a team which enhances their capabilities in creative thinking, providing solutions to a problem and fostering their emerging leadership skills.

This dynamic learning style helps to prepare students for today’s workplace environments.

Toby Yarwasky

VP of Sales Direct: 704.441.6313 Company: 800.242.2303 toby@wibenchmfg.com www.wibenchmfg.com

PAGE 10 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

NEVER FIELD MEASURE A BUILDING AGAIN accurate as-built documentation for precise renovation projects

T . O . E X IS T IN G T H IR D F L O O R F . F . L .

117' - 11 1/ 2"

26'-3 3/4"

8'- 10 1/2"

T . O . E X IS T IN G S E C O N D F L O O R F . F . L .

109' - 1"

9 ' -1 "

FLOOR PLANS

17' - 11 1/2"

8'- 10 1/2"

26'-3 3/4" 17' - 11 1/2"

T . O . E X IS T IN G S E C O N D F L O O R F . F . L .

109' - 1"

9 ' -1 "

3D REVIT MODELS

8 ' - 4 1 /4 "

T . O . E X IS T I N G A T T I C L E V E L F . F . L .

126' - 3 3/ 4"

T . O . E X IS T IN G T H IR D F L O O R F . F . L .

117' - 11 1/ 2"

8 ' - 4 1 /4 "

T . O . E X IS T I N G A T T I C L E V E L F . F . L .

126' - 3 3/ 4"

EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS

T . O . E X IS T I N G F I R S T F L O O R F . F . L .

100' - 0"

T . O . E X IS T I N G F I R S T F L O O R F . F . L .

100' - 0"

1

EXISTING RIGHT SIDE EXTERIOR ELEVATION 3/16" = 1'-0"

AE-301 1

102' - 11 5/8"

2' - 10 1/4"

2' - 6 3/4"

2' - 9 1/2"

2' - 10 5/8" 2 1/2"

9 1/4"

2' - 10" 9 1/4"

5' - 3"

1' - 3"

2' - 9" 9 1/4"

1' - 4"

2' - 11 1/8"

7"

7 1/2"

10' - 5 1/4"

2' - 9 1/2" 9 1/4" 2' - 10 3/4"

6"

2' - 6 3/4" 9 1/4" 2' - 10 1/2"

6"

2' - 6 3/8" 9 1/4"

3' - 2 1/8"

6"

6' - 2 1/4"

6"

2' - 6 7/8" 9 1/4" 2' - 9 3/4"

6"

2' - 6 7/8" 9 1/4" 2' - 10 1/8"

6"

2' - 6 3/4" 9 1/4" 2' - 6 3/8" 6 1/2"

9' - 7"

6' - 0 1/4"

3' - 11 5/8"

4 1/2"

4' - 2" 11 5/8"

5' - 0 3/4"

2' - 10 5/8"

4 1/2"

5 1/2"

9' - 9 3/8"

2 1/2"

5' - 7 7/8"

7 1/2" 2' - 11 3/8"

3' - 2 7/8"

7 1/2"

4' - 8 5/8"

2

AE-300

7 1/2"

5' - 10"

5 1/2"

3' - 8"

4" 11 5/8"

T . O . E X IS T IN G T H IR D F L O O R F . F . L .

117' - 11 1/ 2"

8 ' - 4 1 /4 "

T.O. EEXXISISTTIINNGG AATTTTICIC FLLEOVOE LR FP.LFA.LN. 126' - 3 3/ 4"

T . O . E X IS T IN G T H IR D F L O O R F . F . L .

117' - 11 1/ 2"

8 ' - 4 1 /4 "

2' - 3" 3' - 6 7/8"

4' - 0"

5' - 6 1/8"

17' - 11 1/2"

2' - 3 1/2"

2' - 9 7/8"

5' - 1 1/4"

2' - 8"

24' - 8 1/2"

3' - 3 7/8"

2' - 8"

5' - 10"

2' - 6 1/8"

2' - 8 1/2"

2' - 8 1/2"

3' - 11"

4' - 6 1/2"

1' - 9"

3' - 10 7/8"

2' - 8"

5' - 4"

2' - 8"

3' - 1 1/2"

16' - 4 5/8"

4' - 11"

8' - 10 1/2"

9' - 7"

5' - 4"

2' - 8"

3' - 3 3/4"

2' - 8"

8'- 10 1/2"

26'-3 3/4"

9 ' -1 "

T . O . S E CO N D F LO O R F . F .L .

109' - 1"

9 ' -1 "

T . O . E X IS T IN G S E C O N D F L O O R F . F . L .

109' - 1"

17' - 11 1/2"

8'- 10 1/2"

26'-3 3/4"

20' - 3 5/8"

3' - 8 1/8" 2' - 9"

7 5/8" 3' - 9 3/4"

15' - 1 3/8" 7 5/8"

7 5/8"

T . O . E X IS T I N G A T T I C L E V E L F . F . L .

126' - 3 3/ 4"

6' - 7 1/2"

15' - 1"

16' - 4 1/4"

11 5/8"

1' - 7 1/4"

1' - 2"

3' - 9"

2' - 7"

4' - 8 7/8"

3' - 7 5/8"

3' - 4"

7 5/8"

4' - 0 3/8"

4' - 1 5/8"

5' - 0"

7 5/8"

9' - 5 7/8"

3' - 5 7/8"

3 1/2" 1' - 1 7/8"

3' - 2"

4' - 0 3/8"

5' - 2"

3' - 3"

1' - 4"

2' - 8"

4' - 7 3/8"

4' - 6 3/4"

9 1/4"

6' - 1 1/8"

6 1/2"

9 7/8"

9 1/4" 2' - 10 1/2"

3' - 6 5/8"

5"

5 1/2" 3' - 6 5/8"

6 1/2"

3' - 9 1/4"

4 1/2"

9 1/4"

9 5/8"

5' - 10"

2' - 3 1/2"

9' - 2 5/8"

9' - 2 5/8"

3' - 1 7/8" 5' - 1 3/4"

8' - 2 5/8"

2' - 10 1/2" 2 1/2"

10' - 1 1/4"

32' - 0 1/2"

6"

9 1/4"

2' - 3"

2' - 10 1/4" 2 1/2"

4' - 7"

6' - 5 5/8"

32' - 0 1/2"

11 3/4"

2' - 3"

5' - 8"

3 3/8"

11 3/4"

9' - 11"

5' - 8 1/4"

9' - 10"

11 3/4"

10' - 7 1/2"

5' - 9 3/8"

15' - 3 1/4"

4' - 2 3/4"

11 3/4"

5' - 3"

2

18' - 3 1/4"

10 1/2" 5' - 10 1/4"

11 5/8"

AE-301

1' - 0"

9 1/4"

4' - 7 3/8"

8' - 0"

1' - 6"

6 3/8"

2' - 10 1/2"

1' - 3"

1' - 3"

3' - 10 1/2"

Project:

5' - 0 7/8"

T . O . E X IS T I N G F I R S T F L O O R F . F . L .

100' - 0"

61' - 10 1/2"

T . O . E X IS T I N G F I R S T F L O O R F . F . L .

100' - 0"

102' - 11 5/8"

1

Drawing T

AE-300

1

EXISTING FIRST FLOOR PLAN 1/4" = 1'-0"

Project:

WILL BROWN-2 BARNS - VERNON NJ

2

EXISTING LEFT SIDE EXTERIOR ELEVATION 3/16" = 1'-0"

Scale:

Drawing Number:

20580

AS NOTED Date:

06-16-20 Drawn By:

IDEA

EXI

21609

AS NOT

EXISTING FIRST FLOOR PLAN Phase:

Project No Scale:

Enter address here Drawing Title:

Project No.

Date:

07-19

SHOP DRAWINGS

Drawn By

AEAE-200

Autho

Demo Plans - Reflective Ceiling Plans - Roof Plans - CAD file - E57 (Raw Point Cloud) - 360 Photo/Video Documentation - mep Plans

25 wallkill avenue, Montgomery, NY 12549 • (845) 294-0877 • www.printeks.us.com

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 11

2

AIA STATEN ISLAND’S SPAGHETTI – MARSHMALLOW CONTEST – BUILDING FUTURE ARCHITECTS

by Jeffrey Geary, AIA, AVID Architecture, PLLC

A

IA Staten Island’s Spaghetti-Marshmallow contest began as an idea with a focus on community outreach—the chapter wanted to educate and inform residents about the association, the profession and the practice of architecture. The original thinking was to create a program that involved students who would, by default, require at least one parent or guardian to attend the event with them. Through observation and listening, they would come to realize that working with an architect was not something that should be avoided, nor is it something only the elite few get to do when building their dream home with an ocean or lake view, and certainly not just a necessary evil to be “dealt with” because they received a violation of some sort from the local Building Department.

Cinderella’s Castle reimagined in Marshmallow! Sophia DiStefano, Guilliana Collegio, St Clare’s, 7th Grade. Photo Credit: Boris Vinokur.

Launched in 2012, the inaugural event was scheduled to run the week after Superstorm Sandy hit; an abbreviated event was held as a result. The program consists of students in grades two through eight, who gather to create something, anything they can imagine, using ONLY spaghetti and marshmallows. It can be colorful spaghetti, but it MUST be spaghetti. Any size marshmallows are also allowed, but absolutely NO FLUFF! The program has taken on a life of its own. The participants look forward to it year after year and the science and STEM teachers typically utilize the event as a graded project. In addition, the parents have an outlet for their aspiring architects and engineers that didn’t/doesn’t exist, at least in our area, prior to the inception of this event. The Chapter gets to interact with close to one hundred students, parents, and educators

PAGE 12 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

Santiago Calatrava, the Oculus, transportation hub at the World Trade Center, Gateway Academy

Evan Lee reimageneering of the Eiffel Tower, Gateway Academy, 4th Grade

annually, to help take away the mystery of how to interact with an architect while preserving the mystique of the profession.

The event is hosted at a local High School that has an Advanced Science Program as part of their curriculum.

Prospective students participating in the contest and their parents or guardians are introduced to the world of science.

Every year, the contest is increasingly well received by all involved. There is no entry fee; the only request is that participants raid their pantries for non-perishable food items to donate to a local food pantry. The contest is run the second Saturday in November and provides much needed resources for multiple families in need for the holidays.

I get this all the time—and this is a bit of a trade secret—I must remind the judges every year, WE AREN’T AWARDING THE PRITZKER PRIZE HERE, so let’s not get TOO complicated. The first couple of events, I really had to wrangle in the judges. Judging happens during the event—2 hours to show, 30 minutes to judge, 30 minutes to announce winners, and BAM, the participants and their families are back to their busy lives.

I have found that an event for parents and students cannot run too long, often parents are asking me when it’s going to be over as they are walking in, but I don’t let that ruin the vibe. The students are broken up into two groups by grade: 1) Second through fifth grade; and 2) sixth through eighth grade. There is usually a clear “best in show,” that can be from any age group, but most often there is one student that really makes a spectacle of their creation. Then first, second and third place fall in line, along with honorable mentions. Prizes include a $200 gift card to Barnes & Noble and whatever the monster Lego set is for that year—a Disney castle, Hogwarts Castle, that sort of thing for the best in show; $200, $100, and $75 gift cards to Barnes & Noble for first, second and third

Basilica, Chase Murtaugh, PS 38. This was actually one of my favorites, as it’s the only one I’ve ever seen that took advantage of heating up the pasta and shaping it. Photo Credit: Boris Vinokur.

Verrazzano Bridge – OLSS 8th Grade, Ethan Stadler.

Photo Credit: Boris Vinokur.

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 13

Top Row Left: Cinderella’s Castle; Mason Pagan, Julian Retino, and Claire Scala; IS51, 6th Grade; Top Row Right: Original Structure, Aaron Wijesinghe, IS51, 6th Grade; Second Row: A panoramic of the event, you can feel the excitement? Third Row: The judging in progress. Bottom: Frank Martarella III, AIA, AIASI President at the time this event was run and me (Jeff Geary). I’m in front of the “fruits of our labor” with the donated food from the participants, giveaway bags (red) in back, and preparing to announcie the winners. Photo Credit: Boris Vinokur.

PAGE 14 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

place. Over the years, companies that come to our meetings and provide CES presentations usually donate prizes that are used for honorable mentions. We ask them to pick up a $30-$50 Lego set which helps simplify the process. Last year, our EXCOMM moved to ask them for $$ instead to put towards better giveaways. We also allow the company reps to send a judge, and then their prize is given out by their respective judge, or “special thanks goes to Kamco for their Honorable Mention prize.” It’s a win-win for all involved—the company gets the mention, the students get the prizes, the company representatives are walking around with the judges for an hour, rubbing elbows, it’s very well received from everyone involved.

Frank Martarella III, AIA, AIASI President at the time this event was run, presenting an honorable mention prize. Photo Credit: Boris Vinokur.

The program can be duplicated easily, if you have a few dedicated members who are willing to commit a large portion of their time to make it happen—time to run the event, time for the students to create their projects, time for the school, etc.

Typically, a host location will have someone to help organize but I manage setup/take down/so we really just need the location. If the school wants to add items, like make a day of it, or sell candy/water, they provide the staff to facilitate this aspect of the event. There is no real cost to do this, BUT we do provide AIA Staten Island branded giveaways—a canvas shopping bag, pads, pencils, flash drives, etc. We typically budget 5k and double up the prizes for every other year, so we run about $2500 that is excluding the prizes. Particulars can be provided for the curious by emailing spaghettimarshmallowsiaia@aol.com.

I’m immensely proud of the event the members of AIA Staten Island have created. Although it started out as an event to demystify working with, or getting to know your architect, or at the very least what the AIA stands for, it has grown to become so much more. I regularly cross paths with parents in the mall or around town who couldn’t be more thankful for the event and what it means to their children. I am certain, in a few years’ time, one of our participants will be showing up at one of our offices looking for employment—I will be happy to have them as part of our team and a future member of the AIA. l Jeffrey Geary, AIA, found his love for the built environment under the tutelage of his father, a General Contractor. Jeff graduated from NYIT with a Bachelor’s of Architecture and upon obtaining his licensure in 2004, opened his own practice.

Jeff has been an active member of AIA Staten Island since 2004, holding various positions on the Executive Committee including President from 2015-2017. Jeff is the Committee Chair for the Annual Spaghetti Marshmallow Contest, and led other committees including the Education Outreach Committee.

Jeff was instrumental in coordinating AIA resources and personnel with the Department of Buildings in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy to conduct emergency inspections and evaluations.

Frank with Best in Show in 2021, Aaron Wijesinghe, IS51, 6th Grade.

Photo Credit: Boris Vinokur.

Jeff sits on the Land Use Committee for Community Board 3 and participated with the New York City Department of Buildings in building and energy code revisions, and Flood Zone Regulations due to be submitted for approval by the City Council.

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 15

FUNCTION MEETS DESIGN

Safety, Strength and Beauty.

When you specify 100% offsite fabrication for your project’s ornamental railing system, you get a higher quality product for your client and an easier installation for your builder — no matter how complex the job.

Idlewild Park Learning Center, Queens, NY Architect: Antonio Donofrio, AIA | Principal, Handel Architects LLP Landscape Architects: Signe Nielsen, Mathews Nielsen.

Railing Products: AGS Stainless, Inc. | Glacier with mesh panels.

To learn more about this project, please visit AGSstainless.com/AIANYS | 888-842-9492

PAGE 16 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

DESIGN FOR DISTINCTION How do you create spaces that radiate luxury? You combine industry-leading performance, the highest levels of architectural accuracy, and people-first features.

Marvin windows and doors are designed to help you create those truly distinctive spaces that become instant favorites.

Discover the possibilities at marvin.com.

©

2022 Marvin Lumber and Cedar Co., LLC.

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 17

3

MENTORING HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS ABOUT CAREERS IN ARCHITECTURE, CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING THROUGH THE ACE MENTOR PROGRAM

by Sue Veres Royal, Executive Director, ACE Mentor Program of Greater NY

M

any high school students walk past construction sites and simply turn their music up and do not give it another thought. But for many, if they are allowed to visit these sites, their life goals are changed instantly—it is a light bulb moment, a moment of clarity for many of the students that participate in the ACE Mentor Program. This experience makes their dreams tangible.

The ACE Mentor Program was founded in 1994 by a group of leading architects, contractors, and engineers in New York City; now in its 28th year, the program has served more than 77,000 students nationwide and over 15,000 students in New York alone. There are five ACE affiliates in New York State: Greater NY (NYC, Westchester County and Long Island); Western NY; Upstate Albany; Rochester; and Hudson Valley with the Greater NY affiliate being the largest in NY state and the country, serving over 1,300 students each year.

ACE is committed to introducing students to careers in Architecture and the related build industry, helping them on their path and supporting them in college and as they transition into the workforce.

In order to mimic a real-life project team, students are organized into teams and are supported by mentor teams comprised of professional architects, engineers and construction managers who walk through the process of what an architect does, while learning about the educational and license requirements to become an architect. Students are introduced to

PAGE 18 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

architecture programs at NY colleges and universities speak to graduating seniors about what to expect in college. As a large percentage of our students are the first generation in their families to attend college, conversations can range from “how to approach a professor with a question” to “how do I get my belongings to an upstate school” to “what kind of food do they serve in the cafeteria.” ACE has also created “Ambassador” programs at seven NY colleges/universities where an upper classman, who is an ACE alumni, meets monthly with underclassman to create a group of students with the shared ACE experience who can help with issues ranging from loneliness on campus to struggles in the classroom.

“

One of the best parts of ACE is being

surrounded by people that are in the field you are interested in! You can ask questions, build ACE Mentor students who were part of the program at Perkins Eastman.

software like Revit, Auto CAD and SketchuUP and work together to develop a pseudo design project that they present at the end of the academic year.

While many ACE teams throughout NY meet in schools, students in New York City are given the additional opportunity of meeting with their mentors in professional offices throughout the five boroughs—primarily in Midtown and Lower Manhattan —this gives them the added bonus of seeing what a professional office environment is like. For many of these students, walking into a Midtown Manhattan or Financial District office building is a brand-new experience for students, one that can be intimidating, exhilarating and instrumental in expanding their views of what is possible for their future.

Diversity and inclusion are steadfast principles in the ACE Mentor Program as we work to address the stark reality that, according to NAAB, only 17% of registered architects are women, only 8.5% are Hispanic or Latinx, and only 2% are Black.

While any high school student is welcome to participate in the ACE Mentor Program, outreach is focused on under-resourced areas and underrepresented students—80% of the students who participate in the ACE Mentor Program of Greater NY come from a minority background.

But much work still needs to be done—study after study tells us that it is important for a student to see themselves in the person who is mentoring them. It isn’t enough to just introduce the idea of becoming an architect to a student, students need to feel welcome and included and they must believe that they will have a place in the industry if they work hard. For this reason, ACE is committed to diversifying our mentor base, but also to support our students as they go into college, and eventually enter the workforce.

Five years ago, the ACE Mentor Program of Greater NY began a “Planning for Architecture School” workshop that takes place every June. ACE alumni who are currently enrolled in

connections and have great support. I have always had an interest in architecture but being part of ACE for three years inspired me further and enabled me to see I can produce more than I realized. I feel more confident in my abilities as my experience at ACE provided me with sufficient knowledge to understand

”

the role of an architect.

– Ellianys Betances, Bronx, NY, Architecture student at New York Institute of Technology, 2019 graduate of Manhattan Bridges High School (a NYC public transitional bilingual high school for Spanish-speaking students that caters to recent immigrants).

Overall, ACE strives to create a network—a family—that supports the next generation of architects who will be diverse and inclusive and who can bring their own life experiences and perspectives to the drafting table and the challenges facing our society -- and who will understand the importance of supporting the generation that follows. l

Sue Veres Royal has been the Executive Director of the ACE Mentor Program of Greater NY since 2016. She has over 25 years of experience in nonprofit management.

The ACE Mentor Program of Greater NY is a free after school program for high school students interested in architecture, engineering and construction management. acementorny.org

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 19

The SoundGuard Framing System is expertly designed to provide a practical and cost effective solution to noise control.

Marino\WARE SoundGuard stud is a factory assembled, acoustically decoupled steel stud.

Easily construct interior non-load bearing partitions and chase walls with high STC ratings.

SoundGuard handles like a typical steel stud, easy and fast to install. SoundGuard does not require additional bracing or resilient channel.

p. 800.627.4661 www.marinoware.com | 2022 ©WARE Industries, Inc.

PAGE 20 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 21

4

REBUILDING BUFFALO ON ACTIVE HOPE

by Robert G. Shibley, FAIA, FAICP Dean and SUNY Distinguished Professor School of Architecture and Planning, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

On May 14, 2022, a horrific act of racist hate sent shockwaves through our city, and we were reminded just how far we have to go—as a society, as a city, and as a profession.

Cast into the national spotlight by the events of May 14, 2022, Buffalo’s East Side is ground zero for innovative practices in just city-making led by a coalition of citizens, scholars and future architects and planners at UB. Photo courtesy of East Side Avenues/UB Regional Institute

Since our founding 50 years ago, the University at Buffalo’s School of Architecture and Planning has created the conditions for hope through acts of citizen-driven planning, design and building across the city that hosts us. In grounding our teaching and research in the aspirations of our community and a shared affection for place, we rebuild our city, improve life for its citizens, and drive innovations in design and planning that scale up to cities around the world and into the professions we serve.

PAGE 22 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

The mass shooting at a grocery store in East Buffalo was the collision of an acute act of violence with an equally insidious legacy system of segregation in our cities that isolates, neglects and harms segments of the population along the lines of race. East Buffalo, where 80 percent of Buffalo’s Black population resides, has suffered decades of disinvestment.

The systems of inequity are so deeply embedded that over the past three decades the city’s Black community has seen little progress (and in some cases none at all) on key indicators of quality of life—from income and educational attainment to homeownership and health outcomes.

As a community of educators, scholars and practitioners in the built environment professions, we grieve the loss of life, the trauma inflicted upon our city, and the shortcomings of society in addressing the entrenched injustices of racism. May 14 calls attention—yet again—to the challenge of our time—rebuilding our cities as places where all have the opportunity for life lived well.

The imperative, and opportunity, before us is to dig in, and bring our whole selves to action on behalf of justice in our city. Buffalo and its East Side is ground zero for more just ways of living, and a lever of change for all cities. Drawing upon the guidance of climate activist Joanna Macy and psychologist Chris Johnstone, it is here where we come with gratitude to

its training program for neighborhood youth and future food system workers from underserved populations. The nonprofit is also part of a national grant to our Food Lab that will translate the work of Buffalo’s urban farmers of color into best practices for communities around the world. That same grant is supporting a graduate architecture studio’s design-build of a 150-foot fence that will enclose five vacant lots for BGG’s new greenhouses and engage the community with features for public art, planting and seating.

Students in a graduate architecture studio visit Buffalo Go Green on the East Side for a design-build project that will help the nonprofit expand its urban farm operation. Photo courtesy of Buffalo Go Green

Citizen activist and Master of Urban Planning student Jalonda Hill (third from right) with members of Colored Girls Bike Too. She enrolled in our Citizen Planning School to advance a project that rebuilds the East Side through mobility justice. Photo courtesy of Rise Collaborative

Just down the street from BGG’s headquarters, an architecture and urban design studio is working with neighborhood residents to transform a series of vacant lots into a mix of green space, housing and community services. The project builds off a decade-long master planning initiative for the neighborhood engaging multiple studios at the School of Architecture and Planning and the support of a local business hoping to improve the surrounding community.

UB Master of Architecture student Chenhui Yang’s proposal for “Bailey Commons” on the East Side integrates daycare, affordable live-work apartments, a playground and community gardens. It’s part of a series of proposals co-designed with the community now moving into the first phase of construction.

teach and practice “active hope” with the people of Buffalo – project by project, increment by increment, year over year.

Today, this active hope continues to lift up a new wave of design and planning innovations across the urban landscapes of Buffalo’s East Side, focused squarely on the needs and aspirations of our most vulnerable citizens. The process of learning with our community turns ideas into action while building capacity among citizens and our students—future architects, planners and developers—for the long-term work of equitable placemaking.

Consider that the coalition of Black-led community organizations mobilizing the delivery of food and services in the aftermath of the shooting are the same organizations partnering with our Food Systems Planning and Healthy Communities Lab (Food Lab) to address conditions of food apartheid on Buffalo’s East Side. One of those organizations is Buffalo Go Green (BGG), an urban farm, mobile produce network and wellness education program that’s now expanding its operation into a Holistic Wellness and Agricultural Education Campus. The Food Lab is providing research support and helping BGG grow

The 2021 cohort of East Side Avenues’ Community-Based Real Estate Training program, which aims to keep external investment in the hands of residents and businesses through capacity-building in real estate development. Photo courtesy of UB Reginal Institute

For the past decade, our award-winning Citizen Planning School has mobilized dozens of citizen activists across Buffalo with the tools of urban planning and design. Among its most recent graduates is former East Side resident and UB Master of Urban Planning student Jalonda Hill, founder of Colored Girls JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 23

public research university of the Northeast, we are uniquely positioned to move the needle on equity in the built environment for Buffalo. While we acknowledge we have miles to go, we stand up with the collaborative work in our communities in recognition that hope is not given, it is created. The call to action—for Buffalo, for cities like it, and for those who teach and practice our professions—is to root ourselves ever deeper in place and community and build the path to healing through active hope. l Learn more at archplan.buffalo.edu/RebuildingBuffalo

Henry-Louis Taylor Jr. (center), UB professor of urban planning and associate director of the UB Community Health Equity Research Institute, leads UB medical and architecture and planning students on a recent tour of Buffalo’s East Side to talk with residents about health concerns in the community. Photo by Meredith Forrest Kulwicki

Bike Too (CGBT). She enrolled in the Citizen Planning School to help design her new project, the Holistic Mobility Hub, part of CGBT’s new Black Holistic Urbanism initiative focused on mobility justice. Hill is now prepared to launch a capital campaign for the mobility hub, which will include a bike shop, mobility bank, travel hub and just streets infrastructure design.

The currents of active hope also flow through large-scale projects creating a framework of equitable development policy and practices on the East Side. East Side Avenues, led by our UB Regional Institute, has engaged hundreds of citizens and businesses, as well as an unprecedented coalition of Buffalo-based banks and foundations, to provide capacity-building and infrastructure supports that reinforce more than $200 million in New York State capital funds flowing into the East Side. Its Community-Based Real Estate Development Training program keeps those investments in the community by educating residents and building owners in commercial real estate development. Tapping the expertise of our master’s program in real estate development, the training initiative has graduated more than 30 students in its first two years with continued mentorship to support their development ideas.

Meanwhile, the recent alignment of our Center for Urban Studies, a neighborhood planning group focused on the needs of traditionally marginalized groups, with UB’s Community Health Equity Research Institute joins urban planners with UB medical students and scholars to address race-based health disparities on the East Side and across Buffalo.

The movement toward justice on the East Side is reinforced by a critical mass of community-based research across our city – from an initiative to train Buffalo’s workforce in climate-resilient design and development, to an architecture studio that has developed “tiny home” affordable housing prototypes for cities across upstate New York.

As the State University of New York’s only accredited graduate school of architecture and planning, situated in the premier

PAGE 24 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

“The Harder We Run: The State of Black Buffalo in 1990 and the Present,” (2021), is a follow-up to a study prepared 31 years ago that aimed to determine how the city’s emerging knowledge-based economy impacted Buffalo’s Black community. Both studies were led by UB urban planning professor Henry-Louis Taylor Jr. Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in Without Going Crazy, by Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone. Novato, Calif.: New World Library, 2012.

For more than 40 years, Bob Shibley has advanced evidence-based design excellence as a professor, scholar and practitioner of architecture and urban planning at the University at Buffalo. Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning since 2011, he joined UB in 1982 as professor and chair of architecture and was elevated to the rank of SUNY Distinguished Professor in 2021. Over the past decade, Shibley has guided the School to a top-ranked position in research generation among schools of architecture and planning in the Association of American Universities. His leadership of citizen-driven planning in Buffalo has laid the foundation for the city’s resurgence and is a model for other city-regions throughout the world. In 1990, Shibley founded The Urban Design Project, a university center for the study and critical practice of urban design that developed an international award-winning ensemble of plans for the City of Buffalo’s downtown, waterfront and Olmsted park system, as well as its citywide comprehensive plan. He continues to advance this work through the UB Regional Institute, which aligned with the Urban Design Project in 2011 and today leads a new wave of regional planning efforts. Prior to his appointment as dean, Shibley led the development of UB 2020: The Comprehensive Physical Plan as a senior advisor to UB’s president. He is the author and co-author of 120 publications, including 17 books and 15 book chapters. In 2014, the American Institute of Architects awarded Shibley with the Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture.

A personalized payment solution

built with your clients in mind

At ClientPay, we make accepting payments simple, so you can focus on what matters most to your business: your clients.

Our user-friendly payment solution allows building and design professionals like you to securely accept credit, debit, and eCheck payments anytime, from anywhere— in the office, online, or even at a project site.

Make it easy for your clients to pay you 24/7 Enjoy faster, more reliable payments Experience customer support from real people every time you call

clientpay.com 866-687-6385

ClientPay is a registered agent of Synovus Bank, Columbus, GA., and Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Cincinnati, OH.

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 25

5

21ST CENTURY THINKING, DESIGN EXPLORATION AND DELIVERY – THE MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE AT ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

by Dennis A. Andrejko, FAIA Head –Department of Architecture Golisano Institute for Sustainability Rochester institute of Technology

T

he Master of Architecture program in the Golisano Institute for Sustainability at Rochester Institute of Technology is a relatively new professional degree offering among NAAB accredited programs. Launched in 2011, the program received initial accreditation in 2017 and recently received a full eight-year continuation of accreditation in 2021. As launched, the program’s unique positioning rests with broad and focused sustainability exploration and execution to enhance the value and purpose of design, and its main tenet and underpinning borrows from the Proceedings from Cranbrook 07: Integrated Practice and the Twenty-first Century Curriculum, (AIA and ACSA, 2008) – “…new technologies and practices coupled with the irreversible consequences of global climate change begin to delimit the core challenges facing our schools. BIM, IP (Integrated Practice), and sustainability constitute a natural package but the ways the curricula greet or integrate these realities into studio-based programs of required instruction remains an open question. Old principles still dominate studio pedagogy; few if any schools teach building science in a studio context; fewer still enjoy access to facilities and faculty sufficient to explore new materials and methods of construction.”

The program was founded with direct input and guidance from the architectural profession, and with intentional focus on design delivery and professional practice into the 21st century.

In collaboration with RIT’s College of Art and Design (CAD), and housed within and the Golisano Institute for Sustainability

PAGE 26 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

Golisano Institute for Sustainability (GIS)

provides an arena for comprehensive design exploration. Additional comments from the NAAB 2021 Accreditation Site Visit team noted that, “students have utilized the integrative studio in an exemplary manner, fully integrating complex multi-use architectural design projects to demonstrate ability in design analysis, decision methodologies, code and systems documentation, technical documents, and systems integration” in a comprehensive manner.

(GIS), it draws upon core principles and strengths in both art, design and technology – offering an innovative interdisciplinary initiative and approach.

The architecture program at RIT was founded on the basis of understanding, and responding to, the changing environment.

Courses focus on addressing the current and future environmental and social exigencies of the 21st century. To assure future design leadership and valuable civic engagement, students graduate with a strong understanding of the natural world, social parity and equity, and of the necessity for responsible stewardship of the environment. This was noted by the NAAB 2021 Accreditation Site Visit Team as a valuable, unique and requisite strength of the current program, and particularly relevant to 21st century design delivery – its value, purpose, significance and relevance.

The program offers a platform where sustainability and resilient design thinking are infused into all aspects of the curriculum in an integrated, immersive and holistic way. Further, the Golisano Institute for Sustainability’s flagship, state of the art building—Sustainability Institute Hall—with over 1500 building sensors to collect building operational data - is a high performance living, learning laboratory where students are provided with hands-on learning opportunities to document, assess, test and evaluate multiple building systems. In addition, students are exposed to the results of cutting-edge research being conducted in GIS in such areas as material and assemblage exploration, clean technologies, alternative energy solutions, pollution prevention and green product assessment.

The program combines strengths that already distinguishes RIT at its founding: science, technology, design, and society.

With its emphasis on integrated practice—a collaborative, multi-professional approach to the practice of architecture— RIT’s abiding consideration of practical, career-oriented education is reinforced. The integrated pedagogy is intentional to ameliorate 21st century design thinking in an interactive and collaborative manner. Course material is regularly recursive, and encourages holistic and integrated thinking, as do the building science courses in the “Integrated Building Systems” sequence. With the high level of community engagement, students experience both academic and professional realms as fully integrated. Of particular note, our Integrative Studio

BAB Student Work

Heliodone

The program brings together four cornerstones to capture the value of design to provide healthy, resilient communities and enrich lives: •

SUSTAINABILITY | Creating sustainable and resilient environments as a central theme of the program, grounded on the principle that the adjective “sustainable” is always the implicit modifier to the noun “architecture”;

•

URBANISM | Achieving sustainable environments through better development of equitable and diverse urban living patterns, recognizing that the complexity of the urban environment – buildings, economics, policy, sociology, diJUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 27

versity, and regional culture - requires an interdisciplinary approach to architectural education; •

•

TECHNOLOGY | Using cutting edge technological tools to create technologically advanced structures, and recognizing how natural systems can inform technological thinking; and INTEGRATION | Harmonizing learning and practice, and integrating design and technology, where studios provide a setting as a core educational venue that can model the same cross-disciplinary, cross-professional integration fast becoming the norm in architectural practice.

•

Providing students with the technical and practical knowledge necessary to develop innovative and sustainable solutions to urban problems;

•

Habituating students in creative exploration, critical problem-solving, and robust design investigation;

•

Preparing students as leaders in a briskly evolving profession requiring teamwork, business integration, and holistic, collaborative thinking; and

•

Providing students with the knowledge and skills necessary to obtain professional licensure.

While design exploration, execution and delivery can and will continue to evolve and advance, the Master of Architecture at RIT provides a foundation for continued growth for the discipline and profession to augment its quest to offer and create buildings, neighborhoods and communities that are sustainable and resilient; rich and robust; and equitable and empowering. Moving into the 21st century and beyond means to empower architects – across diverse settings and contexts - to serve society and enrich individual lives by elevating the value of design as a vital and essential element in striving toward a positive, productive, and prosperous future. l

Dennis A. Andrejko, FAIA is Head of the Department of Architecture in the Golisano Institute for Sustainability at Rochester Institute of Technology. His primary design, scholarship and teaching agenda focuses on renewable energy and high performance buildings; regional design and ecological literacy; passive systems in design and design resiliency.

Studio Review

Through its curricular and experiential learning emphases on sustainable design and building solutions, urban revitalization, and integrated practice, the RIT Master of Architecture program educates students to be critical thinkers, well-grounded in the principles and practices of sustainability, who are able to become competent contributors on comprehensive projects that solve problems at the intersection of architecture and sustainability.

Overall, the Master of Architecture program mission is student centric by: •

Developing in the students a first-principle commitment to a fully sustainable built environment;

PAGE 28 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

Spanning over thirty years, Dennis’ work has been featured in documentaries and articles, and he has lectured throughout the US, Europe and Central America. He co-authored Passive Solar Architecture: Logic and Beauty; contributed to editions of the Architectural Graphic Standards; worked on the development of the International Green Construction Code (IgCC); and has served as an expert and leader for numerous Sustainable Design Assessment Teams. In addition, he has been a contributor to AIA’s Guidebook on the International Green Construction Code; AIA’s Guide on Energy Modeling and High Performance Design; and AIA’s Sustainability Resource for Carbon Neutral Design.

Dennis served as the AIA Buffalo/WNY Chapter President; was an AIANYS Director; and a Regional Director on the AIA National Board. He was also Vice President to the AIA National Board, while heading the Board Knowledge Committee. Awards and recognition include the AIA Buffalo/WNY Distinguished Service Award; and the AIANYS President’s Award, President’s Citation, Matthew Del Gaudio Award and the Kideney Gold Medal. He also received the AIA Buffalo/WNY Louise Bethune Award for lifetime achievement and contributions to the profession of architecture.

Dennis received a Bachelor of Architecture at Arizona State University and a Master of Architecture in Advanced Studies at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

An eye for innovation

and a dedicated team to collaborate

to bring your visions to life, in metal.

“Do Not Mistake Our Softness for Weakness” - by Shasti O’Leary-Soudant

Proudly supporting the art, architectural and design communities and students for over 80 years. www.rigidized.com

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 29

6

EDUCATION FROM A LICENSURE & CE LENS

by Robert Lopez, RA, AIA, NCARB, Executive Secretary to the New York State Board for Architecture and the State Board for Landscape Architecture

N

ew York is unique. So unique that we place our regulatory system of professionals, including architects, under the Board of Regents, a citizen body appointed by the Legislature. Guided by the Regents, 55 professions (everything from acupuncture to veterinary medicine!) and over 1,000,000 professionals are regulated within New York’s unified system of education – The University of the State of New York. This fact recognizes the key role that education plays in preparing licensed professionals and in ensuring our continuous development.

Title VIII of the New York State Education Law contains general provisions affecting all professions, including architecture.

It also gives the Board of Regents and the State Education Department (the Department) the final authority for supervising and administering admission to and practice of the professions. The State Boards, including the State Board for Architecture, assist the Board of Regents and Department on all aspects of professional education, licensing, practice, and discipline.

PAGE 30 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

The Board of Regents are also charged with the oversight of architectural programs in New York. Interesting fact - New York is home to the highest number of colleges and universities with NAAB-accredited programs in the United States. A total of 13 institutions of higher education in New York have such programs. Recent additions to New York’s NAAB-accredited programs include Rochester Institute of Technology’s Master of Architecture (2017), Alfred State College’s Bachelor of Architecture (2018), and New York City College of Technology’s Bachelor of Architecture (NAAB candidacy granted in 2018).

Another fact - 86.5% of New York’s architects have a degree from an NAAB-accredited program. Taken together with those who graduate from four-year pre-professional degree programs, 96.4% of New York’s architects have at least a four-year degree in architecture. Many of us have two or more degrees.

We’ve been licensing architects in our State since 1915.

Architects take varied pathways to achieve a license. New York is one of 17 jurisdictions within NCARB that still permits an “all-experience” 12-year pathway to licensure. Within the Department, architecture is one of the very few remaining professions that still permits a person to apply for and receive a license without having any professional education. Less than one percent of New York’s architects (actually, 0.7%) are licensed via this “all-experience” route.

To help ensure our continuing professional competence and ongoing development of knowledge and skills, architects have had to complete continuing education since 2000. The

86.5%

of New York’s architects have a degree from a NAAB-accredited program.

engineering and land surveying and to initiate the CE requirement for geology, a relatively new profession that has existed since 2016. This modernization for architecture took a major step forward when Chapter 578 of the Laws of 2021 was signed into law on November 3, 2021. Again, AIANYS was instrumental in helping to get bill language introduced that affected this statutory change.

Below is a summary of the changes to the Education Law for CE:

•

Taken together with those who graduate from four-year pre-professional degree programs,

96.4%

of New York’s architects have at least a fouryear degree in architecture.

Many have two or more degrees.

requirement has remained steady at 36 hours of continuing education (CE) within each three-year registration period. 2/3 of those hours must be in health, safety, and welfare (HSW) subject areas as defined in regulation. With the help of AIANYS and the input and assistance from the State Board for Architecture, changes were made in 2006 that added flexibility for architects, increased the number of approved providers, and clarified the acceptable HSW subject areas.

More recently, and due to COVID-19, the Department granted an adjustment to architects along with other professionals whose CE requirements restrict licensees to a certain percentage of self-study. This adjustment allows those architects whose registrations are due to renew March 1, 2020 – January 1, 2023 the option to complete 100% of the continuing education requirement as self-study so long as the CE is taken from an approved provider and is in an acceptable subject area. Additionally, the Department granted an adjustment to all architects, regardless of registration renewal date, the capability to take selfstudy CE taken from an approved provider and in an acceptable subject area during this same period.

Comments received within the Department in the last couple of years for those professions affected by this added flexibility have been largely positive.

With continued input from the State Board and the Department, additional changes to the CE requirement are coming. These changes will modernize and more closely align New York’s CE with national standards. These changes follow on the heels of recent changes to the requirements for

Removes the 50% restriction of self-study activities with a passing score on a quiz, such as reading Architectural Record articles and passing a quiz; • Permits six hours of carryover credit from one registration period to the subsequent registration period; • Permits CE that falls within the practice of architecture and the practice of engineering, land surveying, landscape architecture, interior design, and geology. The change does not authorize an architect to practice a profession they are not licensed or authorized to practice; • Removes the exemption for first-time licensees. The law change requires that newly licensed architects must complete their CE the same as other architects; • Permits the Department to exempt an architect from the CE requirement for health reasons, extended active duty with the armed forces of the United States, or for other good cause acceptable to the Department.

The revised law becomes effective in early May 2023 and the Department has begun to draft regulatory amendments to ensure that the new requirements are in place before that time.

The amendments will be published in the State Register via a Notice of Proposed Rule Making and will have the customary public comment period to permit architects who are interested the opportunity to comment.

Architects who are interested in better understanding the CE requirements, have questions regarding the pathways to licensure for their employees, or simply have questions related to practice should visit the Department’s website at http://www. op.nysed.gov/prof/arch/#. If our website does not answer your questions, you may email the Board office at archbd@nysed. gov or call us at (518) 474-3817, x110. l

Robert Lopez, RA, AIA, NCARB has been the Executive Secretary to the New York State Board for Architecture and the State Board for Landscape Architecture within the Office of the Professions and the State Education Department since 2005. Prior to joining the Department, he was a Principal and shareholder at a national 750-person architecture & engineering firm based in Albany, New York, and was the Director of its K-12 Studio.

He has also worked for large, multiple-office national firms headquartered in New York City and Baltimore.

Robert was awarded the Bachelor of Science in the Building Sciences degree and the Bachelor of Architecture degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has been a registered architect in the State of New York since 1993.

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 31

build for a climate-friendly future BE-Ex Ed offers accessible online courses on the principles of low-carbon, high-performance design.

Earn continuing education credits, stay ahead of codes and policies, and incorporate sustainability into your practice—at your own pace.

Use code AIANYS to take any course for free through the end of 2022.

Sign up at learn.be-exchange.org

BE-Ex Ed is an on-demand educational platform by Building Energy Exchange (BE-Ex), a center of excellence dedicated to reducing the effects of climate change by improving the built environment. Find us at be-exchange.org

2022 design awards

Registration is Open!

Submit by September 23, 2020

bridging logic with imagination

Submit Your Project for an AIANYS Design Award Today!

The Design Awards celebrate projects that epitomize what we have come to expect from architects in New York State. Projects range from skyscrapers, to residences, and from firms of all sizes. Projects are built all around the world and all designed to achieve different goals – with the commonality of being designed by architects from New York.

Click here for full requirements, guidelines and to register your entry.

Entry Fees | $270 members | $395 non-members

PAGE 32 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

SOPHISTICATED COUNSEL FOR COMPLEX CONSTRUCTION. Zetlin & De Chiara LLP, one of the country’s leading law firms, has built a reputation on counseling clients through complex issues. Whether negotiating a contract, resolving a dispute, or providing guidance to navigate the construction process, Zetlin & De Chiara is recognized as a “go-to firm for construction.”

WWW.ZDLAW.COM 801 SECOND AVENUE • NEW YORK, NY

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 33

7

AIANYS EDUCATION PROGRAM UPDATE

by Michael Cocca, Director of Education & Marketing, AIA New York State

S

ince January, AIA New York State members have been provided with impactful education and training programs covering a wide range of topics. AIANYS and the 13 local chapters sponsored webinars from the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association/NY Materials, Oldcastle APG Online University, and the Climate Action Council at no additional cost to members. All of these offered HSW/LU credits.

In the fall, the education schedule includes more exciting and engaging webinars to look forward to: •

“Application of the 2020 Existing Building Code of NYS”

•

“Operation Vandelay Industries: An Investigation & Prosecution - What Now?”with Robert Lopez, AIA, Executive Secretary, New York State Education Department/Office of the Professions/State Board for Architecture, Philip Apruzzese, Attorney at Law, Assistant Attorney General, New York State Office of the Attorney General/Criminal Enforcement & Financial Crimes Bureau; Director, CUFFS Initiative and Mark Terra, Detective, New York State Office of the Attorney General.

•

A virtual Small Firm Symposium

•

The first-ever Legal Series; and

•

An Affordable Housing Conference to round out the rest of the year.

In addition, AIANYS partnered with AIANJ and AIAPA to promote the webinar “Live Energy Analysis: Aligning Budgets with Energy Conservation Goals” from Willdan and AIA New Jersey’s “East Coast Green Conference.”

Six live interactive webinars were presented from March through June including: •

•

Two online sessions about the “Application of the 2020 Existing Building Code of NYS” presented by Laura Cooney, AIA; Two online sessions of the “Safety Assessment Program (SAP)” training taught by Illya Azaroff, FAIA; Tim Boyland, AIA; and Verity Frizzell, FAIA;

•

“Equitable Mixed-Use Reinventions: Energizing Urban Sites” with Victor Body Lawson, FAIA and Baye Adofo-Wilson, AICP, of BAW Development; and

•

Jodi Smits Anderson, AIA, moderating a discussion with a sustainability working group of architects, former state agency architects, engineers, and facility directors on the “Designing the Residence Hall of the (Near) Future.”

PAGE 34 | JUNE - JULY ‘22

Watch your emails for more information about these programs.

If you are interested in submitting presentations you would like us to consider for any upcoming programs, you may send them to Mike Cocca, Director of Education & Marketing, mcocca@aianys.org. We encourage you to share your experiences with us.

All programs and registration links can be found on the AIANYS website here. (https://www.aianys.org/calendar/). l

HOW DO YOU BUILD A STRONG COMMUNITY?

Habitat for Humanity and Build with Strength (BWS) have partnered on a nationwide project to build 50 concrete homes in 50 states in 5 years.

RESILIENT

Supported by the National Ready-Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA), this initiative brings resilient and sustainable concrete housing to exemplary community members and their families who will have a place to call home for years to come. The construction of these houses would not be possible without our volunteers, partners, and Insulated Concrete Form

SUSTAINABLE

(ICF) construction. ICFs have quickly become the material of choice for residential and Multi-family construction due to their efficiency, strength, affordability, and sustainable properties.

Build with Strength is proud to partner with the NY Construction Materials Association in the construction of Habitat for Humanity ICF homes in NYS. See contacts below for more info.

ENERGY EFFICIENT

NYS CONTACTS: Doug O'Neill (716) 801-6546 doneill@nrmca.org

Eileen Renaud (518) 783-0909 eileen@nymaterials.com

COST EFFECTIVE

Want to learn more about ICFs and their role in our Habitat for Humanity efforts?

Visit buildwithstrength.com/habitat-for-humanity

JUNE - JULY ‘22 | PAGE 35

J U N E - J U LY ‘ 2 2 ARCHITECTURE NEW YORK STATE is a quarterly publication developed by AIA New York State, 50 State Street, Albany, NY 12207

For questions, comments and editorial content ideas, contact Robin Styles-Lopez, Director of Communications at rstyles-lopez@aianys.org or 518.449.3334.