News & Headlines

The Drachman Institute recognized 28 community leaders nominated by CAPLA faculty for their outstanding collaboration and leadership across diverse organizations. These awardees represent a wide range of sectors, including local government, nonprofits, and tribal communities, highlighting the strong partnerships fostered through the Drachman Institute.

Architect and alumna Diane Reicher Jacobs, FAIA '88 shared during her convocation address her unconventional path into architecture and the core values that have guided her work: truth, beauty, and love. She encouraged graduates to embrace the uncertainty ahead with curiosity and care, ending with a heartfelt “triple dare” to go forth and build better places.

For their final capstone project, architecture students designed and built a prototype 8-by-12-foot micro-shelter that they hope lays the groundwork for a network of similar shelters for unhoused people in Southern Arizona.

HK Associates was recognized in "Architect" magazine’s 2024 Residential Architect Design Awards, an international program celebrating excellence in residential design.

Housing affordability continues to be a critical issue in the United States. Meagan Ehlenz's research explores the potential for scaling shared equity homeownership (SEH) as a strategy to address Arizona’s growing housing affordability crisis.

Senior Lecturer Laura Carr led 11 Master of Architecture students to Tuba City, Navajo Nation, as part of her ARC 510E Community Studio course. Students engaged with local officials, explored potential project sites, and immersed themselves in the community. Carr emphasized the importance of working with Tribal communities, while students reflected on the value of adaptability, relationship-building, and inclusive, community-driven design.

Bachelor of Architecture students were recognized in the 2024 AGM Universal Design Student Awards for innovative projects that centered empathy, accessibility, and the human experience. Winning designs by Taranm Akbary and Sadey Bowles reimagined inclusive spaces in Bisbee, showcasing how Universal Design can elevate both creativity and community impact.

DUST architects explored how the American Southwest’s desert landscape inspires their work, shaping memory, creativity, and a deep sense of belonging. Its beauty and isolation offer space for reflection and connection to broader human experiences.

In celebration of World Landscape Architecture Month, CAPLA and the Arizona Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects student chapter are taking over the Arizona ASLA Instagram account in April.

Tucson’s cherished independent nonprofit art-house theater, The Loft Cinema, is expanding—and leading the project is Bob Vint, assistant professor of practice at the School of Architecture.

A Canadian and global academic leader, Dean Nancy Pollock-Ellwand reflects on her time in Japan and Australia, her work with UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and the connection between culture and design—highlighting how emotion and global perspectives influence the built environment and the classroom.

Heather Whiteman Runs Him is a citizen of the Apsaalooke/Crow Nation. She is the Director of the Tribal Justice Clinic and Associate Clinical Professor at University of Arizona Rogers College of Law where she also teaches courses on tribal water rights, tribal courts, and tribal law.