Since the start of her tenure, Dean Amale Andraos has prioritized the expansion of resources for financial aid. With the help of alumni and friends, the School has been able to make significant progress in our commitment to financially support our students with steady year-after-year increases in financial aid.

The collective generosity shown on Columbia Giving Day is central to GSAPP’s effort to welcome and support students from all backgrounds. While every dollar donated will go towards tuition relief, donors may choose which scholarship funds to support:

GSAPP Scholarship Funds are designated as current use funds that can be used immediately for enrolled students. Alumni may give to the general GSAPP Scholarship Fund as well as specific program(s), which can be found on the drop-down menu of the giving form.

GSAPP alumna Norma Sklarek was the first Black woman to receive a fellowship by the American Institute of Architects in 1980 and one of the first African-American women to found and manage an architectural firm. To honor her achievements and acknowledge the barriers she had to overcome, the Norma Merrick Sklarek ’50 B.Arch Scholars Fund was created with an initial investment of $1 million from GSAPP. All gifts to the Sklarek Fund will help us make this initiative permanent.

Help GSAPP customize alumni resources and inform programming by answering a brief survey developed in coordination with the GSAPP Alumni Board. Responses accepted through November 15.

We thank you in advance for sharing your ideas with GSAPP.

Tuesday Talks is an opportunity for the GSAPP Students to connect with the larger Alumni community for informational mentorship this Fall. The program pairs current students with alumni professionals for hour-long, one-on-one virtual conversations about career development.

Thank you for our volunteers for our most recent session on October 12: John Barrett AIA ‘13 MArch (SHoP Architects), Rajiv Fernandez ‘10 MArch (Lil'Icon), Christopher Gardner '18 MSAAD (TUNA), Sara Grant '04 M.Arch (MBB Architects), Ricardo Hernandez '04 MSRED (Office America Group), Trevor Lamphier '12 M.Arch (The Beck Group), Luis Felipe Paris '13 M.Arch (WeWork), Matt D. Viggiano '10 MSUP (Kasirer).

To volunteer as a mentor, please contact Esther Turay at et2169@columbia.edu.

Upcoming Dates:

• October 26, 12pm EST
  
• November 9, 9am EST
  
• November 30, 12pm EST

Please note that students are happy to work with Alumni on alternative times as needed.

We are pleased to share accomplishments of the Columbia GSAPP Urban Design program during the past year. Read updates including summer studio recaps, faculty and alumni news, and upcoming programs.

In the fourth episode of the A&E System mini-series, Eddy Almonte ‘19 MSUP and Emma Leigh Macdonald ‘20 MSCCCP discuss their involvement in “The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020,” a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. A transcript of their conversation is available here.

The A&E System publication is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website and Instagram.

• The Spring 2021 M.S. in Historic Preservation studio led by Faculty Erica Avrami and Morgan O'Hara published the studio report The Harlem Renaissance: Preservation, Spatial Encounter, and Anti-Racism.

• Professor Mario Gooden ‘90 M.Arch premieres a film based on his performance “Black Ground: Dispossession and Inheritance” at the 1014 Past and Future Festival on October 16 at 5PM. Register here.

• Professor Mabel O. Wilson ‘91 MArch, recipient of the 2021 Vincent Scully Prize, is being honored by National Building Museum with a discussion and celebration of her work on October 19 at 6:30PM. Register here to attend the event, which qualifies for 1.5 HSW credits through AIA.

• MSAAD Program Director and Associate Professor Andrés Jaque presents “Being Silica,” a performance by his firm Office for Political Innovation, at Performa Biennial 2021 from October 29 – 31. Register here.

Female Frontiers, Pioneers and Champions of Architecture
Recorded in September 2021

Pascale Sablan ‘07 MSAAD and Yiselle Santos Rivera talk about fostering a positive working environment for women, designing more inclusive workspaces and the benefits they’ve gained from their work being highlighted by WAN’s Female Frontier Awards.

Climate Week
Recorded in September 2021

The week of September 20-26 brought together key climate leaders to accelerate climate action and discuss ambitious commitments ahead of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference, or COP26, later this fall in Glasgow. Watch the recorded content from Climate Week with the link above.