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06/2005 |
Boston Architectural Center
Launches $1 Million Internship Program Private gift to aid diverse high school students entering the design professions |
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The funds will help “recruit, educate, mentor, and encourage young people who might not otherwise have considered careers in architecture or interior design,” says BAC President Ted Landsmark, Esq., PhD, Assoc. AIA. Landsmark, who also serves as chair of the AIA’s Diversity Committee and president-elect of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), explains that students can spend two summers and then enroll in the school’s practice-based curriculum. A goal of the scholarship program is to provide a full range of support to underrepresented groups that has not existed in the past and to “support these young people until they become full-fledged members of the profession.” It had previously appeared that very few from underrepresented groups had gone on to become practicing professionals, Landsmark says. As a result, there will be increased attention to tracking the outcomes of the initial scholarship grantees.
Ultimately, he concluded the two would be a good match. “The Boston Architectural Center recognizes the concept of a scholarship program for high schools student as an opportunity for introducing the design world to teenagers to seek out deserving, often under-represented young people. This is a unique opportunity for the BAC to fill a largely vacant role in academia and serve as a model for the design profession,” Houseman says.
Part of wider effort Landsmark says the BAC funding is part of a wider effort to engage private individuals, firms, and components in an effort to address demographic disparities in the profession. “All schools can do more to nurture demographic change,” Landsmark says. “Our hope is that this kind of gift will encourage similar programs across the country.” The efforts involve the AIA national component, state and local components, firms, architecture schools, and private individuals, Landsmark advises.
The gift, Landsmark says, is a good fit for the BAC, which offers a practice-based curriculum. The Center Summer Academy, offered since 1973, allows students entering grades 10-12 to gain experience in the field of design through hands-on projects, interactive learning, and educational field trips. Students leave CSA with a design portfolio and a solid sense of whether to pursue an education and career in architecture or interior design. Copyright 2005 The American Institute of Architects.
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