My name is Sanaz, and my journey into architecture began long before my formal education. Growing up in an architectural department where my father worked, I was surrounded by the artistry of design and the ingenuity of construction, sparking my passion for art and buildings at an early age. In 2011, I formally stepped into the world of architecture, and this field has been both my profession and my calling ever since. My design experience spans a variety of projects, blending creativity and practicality to shape spaces that reflect humanity’s diverse needs and aspirations. This journey has solidified my belief that thoughtful design can positively influence communities, environments, and individual lives, regardless of scale.
EDUCATION
Master of Architecture
Minor in Construction Management
2025
Louisiana State University | Louisiana, Unites States
Master of Architectural Engineering
2018
Shahid Bahonar University | Kerman, Iran
Bachelor of Architectural Engineer- 2015
Shahid Bahonar University | Kerman, Iran
SKILLS
• Autodesk AutoCAD
• Autodesk Revit
• Adobe Illustrator
• Adobe Indesign
• Adobe Photoshop
• Sketchup
• Grasshopper
• Microsoft Office
WORK EXPERIENCE
Teaching Assistant Spring 2024 - Now
Louisiana State University | School of Architecture
• TA- course ARCH 1002 - Spring 2025
• TA- course ARCH 1001 - Fall 2024
• TA- course ARCH 1002 - Spring 2024
I collaborated with 4 professors to support freshman undergraduate students in understanding their coursework and projects. This involved providing detailed critiques of their assignments, offering constructive feedback to enhance their skills, and sometimes assisting in grading to ensure evaluations were thorough and accurate.
Graduate Assistant Fall 2023
Louisiana State University | School of Architecture
• IT services assistant
Assisted the IT manager in the operation of large format printers, gaining hands-on experience in advanced printing technology. Supported students with their printing needs, ensuring proper execution of projects and troubleshooting technical issues.
University Instructor Fall 2020
Shahid Bahonar University | School of Architecture | Iran
• course “Geometry of Landscape”
Taught “Geometry of Landscape” to freshman architecture students, focusing on sketching techniques and understanding the concept of proportions in various types of perspective. Designed lessons to help students grasp fundamental concepts of visual composition and spatial relationships through hands-on practice.
Architectural Designer
2019-2022
Omran modern Construction & Consulting Company | Iran
• Part of a design team for multiple architectural projects encompassing residential,renovationa, structure, commercial etc.
CO-URBAN HAVEN
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY, INDIVIDUAL FALL2023
CO-URBAN HAVEN
STUDENT CO-LIVING COMMUNITY OF 400 PREFABRICATED UNITS,
NYC
Hudson River
Co-Urban Haven project is a residential/communal building located in 504w 49 st NYC. Designing a co-living tower involves creating a space that foters a sense of community, convenience, and shared living for its residents.
My design concept for this project was to use single bedroom prefabricated units combined with shared areas for all the residents like kitchen, living and dining room. The first two floors are dedicated to communal spaces and the rest are residential stories.
The most significant challenges that I faced during this project were:
• Small scale of the site to fit 400 units in it.
• Set back rules in NYC.
• The extrme weather in this city in both cold and hot seasons.
However, there were some opportunities that I focused on them as the strong point of this building:
• The spectacular west view to the Hudson River.
• Using the south wind and sun light.
• Community connection to the urban spaces.
• Designing bus stop and bicycle parking.
• Designing a dog park and other related facilities due to the lack of these kinds of spaces in the neighbourhood.
NEIGHBORHOOD
PERSPECTIVE
A shaded Bus stop
A Bike parking with showers per 50 bikes.
NEIGHBORHOOD
Street Music Scene
ENTRANCE SOUTH VIEW
NEIGHBORHOOD
Park
Ditch Railroad
A Dog park
HUDSON RIVER WEST VIEW
FLOOR PLANS
Third Floor
1- Lobby
2- Elevators
3- Stairs
4- Shared Living Room
5- Shared Kitchen
6- Units
7- Shared Laundry
8- Reception
Second Floor
1- Lobby
2- Roof Terrace
3- Cafe
4- Gym
5- Lockers
6- Showers & Bathrooms
7- Sport Classes
8- Massage Rooms
9- Storage
10- Stairs
11- Elevators
12- Music Room
13- Orchestra Rehearsal Room
14- Music classes
15- Storage
First Floor
1- Lobby
2- Restaurant
3- Kitchen
4- Offices
5- Auditorium
6- Scene
7- Back Stage
8- Projector Storage
9- Auditorium Entrances
10- Public Bathrooms
11- Elevators
12- Library
13- Reception
14- Educational Classes
15- Conference Room
16- Storage
17-Computer Lab
18- Stairs
19- Spa
20- Pet shop
21- Lobby
22- Cosmetic Store
23- Rare Entrance
24- Main Entrance
25- Greenery
26- Dog Park
27- Bicycle Parking
28- Car Parking Ramp
Design For Change
Designing foldable beds and coaches provide this opportunity for users to chang their environment based on their needs. Beside the furniture, the staircase for the second floor (study/office zone) in each unit is completely foldable based of tenants requires.
Design For Discovery
Designing semi-story residential units increase the sense of discovery in users, specifically the second stroty will be used as study/office zone with a spectacular view to Hudson River or the town.
Design For Energy
Based on the prevalenced wind directions and sun path during cold and hot seasons, the orientation and juxtaposing of the units are in order to recieve the most sunlight, blocking the cold annoying wind and welcoming the summer breeze. Beside this,using geothermal energy for cooling and heating is considered to reduce the energy consumption.
Design For Water
Rain Water Harvesting: New York City is rich in freshwater sources, as normal annual precipitation is around 40 to 50 inches in the site district. Based on the calculations from 12,500(cf) incident water volume in 2yr 24h, approximately 6000(cf) rainfall water could be managed onsite.
GARDEN OF HOPE
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY, INDIVIDUAL SPRING 2024
GARDEN OF HOPE OUT-PATIENT REHABILOTATION CENTER
This project is a non-profit community project that is sponsored by Wilson Foundation in the North Baton Rouge area which aims to bring equity to this neighborhood.
From my perspective, the main issue in this vicinity is poor health conditions among young generation, such as obesity, increasing rates of sexually transmitted diseases, and the most important one, drug/alcohol addiction.
My program is an Out-Patient rehabilitation center, which by focusing on mental and physical therapy and special therapeutic activities, aims to fight addiction and increase health outcomes in this area for youngs under 18 who have drug or alcohol addiction, and eating disorders.
In order to meet this aims, I divided this project into 3 main parts:
• The educational part as the public place.
• The medical and treatment spaces which is mainly the private section. And the third part is
• devoted to recreational spaces and is semi-public.
The site is situated near Gus Young Ave from the south and split into 2 parts by Ward Creek. But there is a big challenges:
• The creek and the flooding problems in this area
Bold features of my design is the 3 main ramps that connect all the public facilities for easier access for all members of the community, and the flooding considerations like bioswale, and restoration pond.
Choctaw Dr
Design Process Diagram
4
cutting the edges for better lighting and create a shape that holds the rain pond
5
shor tening the length for creating access to the pond from Noth & South
6
joining the public spaces together with ramps to empower accessibility
Facade Diagram
YouthWithAlcohol/ DrugAddiction
Section B-B
Section A-A
GROW IN EQUALITY
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY, TEAMWORK, SPRING 2024
GROW IN EQUALITY
200 UNITS OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR MORE EQUITABLE COMMUNITY
This projet located on 1500 Main Street in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, along the Florida Corridor, which acts as the current racial and economic dividing line of Baton Rouge, separating the wealthier neighborhoods in the south from the more vulnerable neighborhoods in the north. The current built environment only serves to perpetuate this inequality issue: the site is underdeveloped, with almost no vegetation, no accessible pedestrian crosswalks or traffic lights, and no bike lanes or sheltered bus stops, which all create an unpleasant environment that discourages all interaction. However, the site location presents a unique opportunity in that it connects to the downtown and mid-city areas, and therefore it is crucial for the site to engage the broader community while still catering to the needs of the immediate residential community.
This project proposes a mixed-income and multi-generational housing development with a focus on community gardening as a way to attract the broader community while also providing residents with access to healthy food. There are additional support services and amenities for residents, with a green plaza and outdoor event space to host farmers’ markets, church community meetings, and after-school events to foster interaction between residents and the surrounding community.
Housing units are clustered around a semi-public courtyard and playground area that is only available to residents, with greenery framing the area for more privacy. With a gradient that separates public gathering space from private living space, residents can feel comfortable and safe, while also being integrated and engaged with the broader community.
I fear that I do not have access to health centers or neighbors that can care
I fear that I’ll feel lonely and isolated from my younger neighbors. I hope for a park nearby to spend time with my grandkids.
I fear that I am not near any grocery stores and don’t eat healthy, fresh foods.
I hope to live near a reliable
We hope to have places to eat and socialize after church on Sundays.
I hope to find a petfriendly place to live.
STAKEHOLDER MAPPING
I fear that I do not have access to public transportation, and I do not have
I hope to have a nearby place to hang out
I hope there is a nearby daycare to watch my kids while I’m at work.
I fear I won’t be able to pay my child’s tuition in the future.
I hope we can really settle down here.
I fear it’s unsafe to let my kids play outside alone.
I hope our kids can go to a good school.
DESIGN PROCESS
CORE
Central courtyard space for residents, leaving the southern portion of the site public to act as a buffer zone between high traffic on Florida Blvd and private residential area.
SPLIT
Shifted volumes creates variety of semi-private spaces between: playground, courtyard, garden, and circulation. Allows for gradient from public to private.
STACK
Prefabricated modules stacked in columns, leaving terraces between to create more integrated social spaces and allow natural light to penetrate.
but units on the outer edges are shifted to allow for variety in terraced spaces.
UNCONDITIONED EXTERIOR
AFFORDABILITY
MODULAR CONSTRUCTION
The housing portion of the building is made up of four different prefabricated unit types that maintain some shared dimensions in order to further reduce costs. With light wood frame construction that is built off-site, the unit modules are then transported and assembled on-site. This is not only more cost-efficient, but also faster than traditional construction and more sustainable, as it minimizes waste and energy consumption.
EFFICIENT UNITS
To maintain affordability of the development, the design of the units is as efficient as possible, with minimal square footage that still allows residents to be comfortable. Residents share access to amenities like laundry and gyms in common areas to reduce appliances in units.
MINIMAL AIR CONDITIONING
While individual units have AC units, the circulation spaces are exterior and unconditioned to minimize energy usage and maximize access to fresh air and sunlight. The addition of wooden shading devices as well as gardens that reduce the heat island effect keeps the site cool.
EQUITY
COMMUNITY GARDEN
This design proposes a community garden as a means of connecting residents with one another while also attracting the broader community to the site. Not only does it provide people with fresh and healthy local food sources, but farmers’ market events which take place on the southern portion of the site can also allow residents to make some profits. The garden creates a more scenic environment for residents to enjoy, improving their overall wellbeing.
SOCIAL CORRIDORS
To create connections between residents, the units are surrounded by exterior walkways and terraced gardens, providing shared spaces for residents to linger and socialize. With walkways that provide fresh air, sunlight, and visual connection with the courtyard, residents have an increased sense of safety and connection, which is crucial on a site that is currently not very safe.
TRANSPORTATION
One issue with the existing site is that it does not have pedestrian-friendly infrastructure, creating an environment where people must rely on cars. The proposed design not only includes a bus stop but also bike parking to alleviate this issue. Also with the addition of a basketball court, gym, and shaded walkways, residents are encouraged to be physically active and live a healthier lifestyle.
STUDIO
Partitioning of unit with storage units to create space dividers and make the space feel larger.
1 BEDROOM
Multipurpose furniture like foldable tables allow for space to be reconfigured efficiently.
2 BEDROOM
Majority of family households in the area are single parent, so keeping bedrooms nearby allows for easy access while maintaining privacy.
There are not many 3 bedroom units in the surrounding area, so this unit caters to larger families with a lot of closet and storage space.
OTHERS
KERMAN | IRAN
STARLIT DUNES
A DESERT RESORT FOR STARGAZING AND RELAXATION, IRAN
Project type: Bachelor’s dissertation
Project duration: 4 months
Location: Shahdad desert, Kerman, Iran
This project is a designing of the tourist residential recreational center in the desert of Iran that the main focus was climate adaptation, formal design and creation of microclimate. Formal concept is taken from duns to harmonic with the context.
Dynamic Solar Panels used on the roof are closed during the day to convert solar energy into electricity and are opened during the night to provide sky vision for the residents and help thermoregulation in that hot-arid climate very well.
OTHERS
KERMAN | IRAN
NATURE’S EMBRACE
BIOPHILIC CHILDREN CANCER HOSPITAL, KERMAN, IRAN
Project type: Master’s Dissertation
Project duration: 5 months
Location: Kerman, Iran
This project is a designing of cancer center for children that focuses on biophilic attributes and connection with nature in order to improve psychological, mental and physical wellbeing. This hospital is located in a peaceful neighborhood of a huge park in the suburb. The attention is mostly on breathing central gardens, green balconies and green sloped roofs to reconnect patients and natural environments .
