Robert Perkins

Bob Perkins joined CAPLA in 2019 as a senior lecturer in architecture. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects, licensed since 1986, and brings a range of experience in both academia and professional practice.

On the academic side, Bob interned at the Solar Energy Research Institute (now part of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory) during graduate school, contributing to two published technical papers on sustainable building energy analysis, as well as the book Design of Energy Responsive Commercial Buildings. He joined the faculty at Mt. San Antonio College in California as a full-time professor of architecture in 2001, receiving tenure in 2004. He retired with emeritus status in 2016. His achievements there included stints as department chair, restructuring the departmental curriculum and attaining program articulation with the University of California, Berkeley. He taught multiple courses in both design and technology, and advised three award-winning student teams in sustainable design competitions. He also attained a LEED BD+C credential in 2013.

In professional practice, Bob’s career began in Denver, working on a variety of commercial and institutional projects. In 1986, after a year in Tokyo, he joined Gruen Associates in Los Angeles, focusing primarily on the Los Angeles Convention Center expansion with Pei, Cobb, Freed, Design Architects. He later served in construction document and project management roles for PBWS Architects and MCG Architects, both of Los Angeles. Bob’s project experience includes churches, retail, schools, office/warehouse and industrial structures. He also assumed lead design and management roles in the construction of three megaplex theater complexes in Hawaii and California.

Bob’s recent projects include a residence in Hawaii, renovation of a mid-century modern home in Tucson and gutting and rebuilding an Airstream travel trailer. He enjoys making furniture and incorporates a blend of traditional and computer-assisted fabrication techniques.

He received his BS in Civil Engineering from Princeton University in 1976 and Master of Architecture from the University of Colorado, Denver in 1982. He finds the CAPLA community a fantastic environment for teaching and learning.