NEWSLETTER - January 31, 2025

Join us on Monday, February 10th, for the next event of our 2024-2025 lecture series titled

"M U L T I V A L E N T."

M U L T I V A L E N T  refers to the ability of architecture to address a multitude of values and meanings from climates, cultures, ecologies, and design intents.

Our next lecture, titled "GROUND UP," will be presented by ALEKSANDRA JAESCHKE at 3:30 PM CT and held in the GALLERY on the ground floor of the HCOA.

ALEKSANDRA JAESCHKE is an Associate Professor of Architecture at The University of Texas at Austin. She holds a Doctor of Design degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Design, an AA Diploma from the Architectural Association in London, and a professional license in Italy. For her work at AION, an architectural firm that she co-founded and co-directed, Aleksandra received the Europe 40 Under 40 Award for 2011 conferred by the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and the Chicago Athenaeum. She has also won the Harvard Graduate School of Design’s 2019 Wheelwright Prize and the 2021 Mark Cousins Theory Award from DigitalFUTURES. In 2021, Aleksandra curated the Plant Potential event series on human-plant relations and published a book based on her doctoral dissertation, The Greening of America’s Building Codes: Promises and Paradoxes, in December 2022. Read more on Aleksandra Jaeschke...

Jaeschke's lecture and Q&A will be held in the Gallery on the ground floor of the Huckabee College of Architecture. The event will also be streamed live via the Zoom information below:

You are invited to a Zoom webinar.

When: February 10, 2025 (3:30 PM CT)
Topic: M U L T I V A L E N T

Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://texastech.zoom.us/j/98440030102?pwd=MlZhVHBIKzRMdkpEemdBZmI4RHdjUT09
Passcode: 665526

For any further inquiries, please contact Sr. Event Coordinator Rachel Roe at rachel.roe@ttu.edu.

HCOA Alumnus Tyler Glass, a recent Master of Architecture (2024) and Bachelor of Science in Architecture (2022) graduate, has received the 2024 Edward Allen Student Award from the Building Technology Educator’s Society (BTES). This national award recognizes exceptional students for their contributions to building technology education, research, and practice.

Nominated by Associate Professor Peter Raab, Tyler’s work focuses on excellence in design and technical advancement to advance the architecture field through innovative, research-driven approaches.

Learn more about the Edward Allen Student Award and the 2024 winners here.

Fourth-year student and research assistant at POST (Project for Operative Spatial Technologies) Salma Rodriguez from the Huckabee College of Architecture El Paso has received the 2024 Robert L. Wesley Award. This award, bestowed by the SOM Foundation, honors four students who display leadership, talent, and commitment to each of their communities. Recipients receive a $10,000 prize in addition to support from Black Spectacles and a yearlong mentorship program connecting them with leading BIPOC practitioners and educators.

To learn more about the Robert L. Wesley Award and Salma's achievements, click here.

Photo courtesy of the SOM Foundation

The HCOA concluded its events for Next Step Prep (NSP) 2025 on Friday, January 24, following a successful week of workshops, lectures, and mock interviews. NSP, as part of the college's annual Career Season, offers students the opportunity to enhance their professional skills in preparation for the HCOA's annual February Career Fair.

Throughout the week, students participated in a series of events aimed at refining their interview etiquette, professional resumes, and design portfolios, helping them confidently advance to the next stage of their careers.

We extend our sincere gratitude to our Career Season sponsors, event speakers, and the dedicated faculty and staff who helped make NSP 2025 possible!

Lunch & Learn with Texas Tech Career Center

Lunch & Learn: Professional Dress, Interview, and Translating Skills with Texas Tech Career Center

Lunch & Learn: Portfolio Workshop with Oscar Natividad

Mock interviews

Gold Sponsor Lecture: Doug Moss with Steinberg Hart

Gold Sponsor Lecture: Sean O'Brien with O'Brien Architects

Assistant Professor Dr. Asma Mehan has co-authored a chapter titled “Homemaking or Placemaking? Understanding Home and Place among Vulnerable Populations”, featured in the newly released Placemaking in Practice: Volume 3, published by Brill Publishing.

In this chapter, Dr. Mehan and her co-authors examine the nuanced and interrelated meanings of home and place, focusing on how vulnerable populations experience belonging and attachment. The research provides insights into placemaking practices and their socio-cultural implications for marginalized communities and addresses the future of placemaking and digitization, while tackling challenges and research opportunities in this evolving field.

Other collaborates on this chapter include Dr. Mastoureh Fathi from University College Cork, Bahanur Nasya from Wonderland, Dr. Jasna Mariotti from Queen’s University Belfast, and Dr. Tatsiana Astrouskaya from the Herder Institute.

This chapter is part of the COST Action Dynamics of Placemaking (DOPMADE) initiative, supported by COST and the European Commission.

Placemaking in Practice: Volume 3 is now available online at Brill Publishing. Access the book chapter through the link here.

Assistant Professor Dr. Asma Mehan and Natalia Dominguez have co-authored a peer-reviewed article titled “Interdisciplinary Urban Interventions: Fostering Social Justice Through Collaborative Research-Led Design in Architectural Education”, published in Architecture Journal.

This research explores the transformative potential of interdisciplinary design and participatory methods in addressing pressing social justice issues within urban contexts. Using case studies, digital mapping, and project creation, the article demonstrates how collaborative approaches in architectural education can promote social awareness and equity in urban design. The research focuses on critical themes such as Art Activism, Tactical Urbanism, Environmental Justice, and Gender Equity that encourage inclusive and equitable urban futures.

Read the full article here.

The symposium Orienting Imagination: What Are the Stakes on the Llano Estacado?, organized by the Huckabee College of Architecture in collaboration with the School of Art, will take place from January 31st to February 1st, 2025 at the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts Firehouse Theater. Dr. Bryan E. Norwood from University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture will deliver a keynote address on the first day of the event, Friday, January 31st, at 6:00 PM CT. Additionally, the symposium will feature presentations on a range of topics, including the land, built environments, and phenomenological landscapes of the Llano Estacado.

Orienting Imagination calls for tangible and intangible interventions addressing reciprocity, communication, and interdependent positionings between people and lands. Along with other themes, contributors will ask how to orient experience, energy, resources, and production in the Llano Estacado to explore lessons for planetary re-orientation.

The symposium was awarded a grant of $5,000 from the Ryla T. & John F. Lott Endowment for Excellence in the Visual Arts, administered by the School of Art. The Symposium Steering and Review committee includes Assistant Professor Dr. Ke Sun, Joe Arredondo, Director of Landmark Arts in the School of Art, Chris Taylor, Director of Land Arts of the American West; Professor, Associate Professor Dr. Kevin Chua from the School of Art, and Lecturer Natalie Hegert from the School of Art.

All inquiries about the symposium may be directed to the Symposium Steering & Review Committee. Contact Dr. Sun at ke.sun@ttu.edu.

For more information about the symposium or to view the schedule of events, click here.

Donations are critical to the advancement of our program. With your contributions, we can fund our merit-based scholarships, recruit extraordinary faculty, fund research endeavors and improve our facilities. No gift is too small to make an impact on our students, faculty, and staff. If you're interested in giving, the Texas Tech University Office of Institutional Advancement has a convenient web portal for making secure, online donations to one of the established Huckabee College of Architecture funds. Click here to donate.

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