The Hampton Roads chapter of the AIA has been awarded $2,500 as the first recipient of the Emerging Professional Component Grants. Founded in 2004 and launched at this year’s Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference, the program was established “to assist AIA components in the development of programs that foster the mission of young architects and associates.” The program is funded by the AIA College of Fellows and cosponsored by the Young Architects Forum and the National Associates Committee. The jury comprised NAC Regional Associates Director Jeremy Burge, Assoc. AIA; YAF Advisory Committee member David Brossett, AIA; and the COF Executive Committee: Chancellor Lawrence J. Leis, FAIA; Vice Chancellor Ted P. Pappas, FAIA; Bursar Carole J. Olshavsky, FAIA; and Secretary Frank E. Lucas, FAIA. In addition to awarding AIA Hampton Roads, the jury also bestowed Honorable Mention designation on the proposals submitted by AIA Houston and AIA New York.

The Emerging Professional Component Grant program was spawned by a COF meeting in Seattle last year. The Seattle chapter’s Young Architects had been given the task of redesigning the chapter office and a small budget to complete the job. Because the College is committed to advancing the profession and mentoring young professionals, 2005 COF Chancellor Betsey O. Dougherty, FAIA, contributed $2,500 of COF funds to the cause. Recognizing that AIA chapters provide myriad opportunities to young architects that should be encouraged and supported, the COF worked with the NAC and YAF to create an annual fund that would assist components in enhancing their existing activities for emerging professionals or provide seed money for new programs. The maximum grant awarded annually is $2,500, though it may be split among components.

Exploring community connections
AIA Hampton Roads represents the seven cities of Virginia’s Tidewater region: Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach. Their proposal, Archi-Post: Designing Hampton Roads, was selected for its goals to:

• Get emerging professionals engaged in their community
• Sharpen a wide range of young architects’ skills, including design, photography, teamwork, marketing, package design, research, and writing
• Become a self-sustaining program by creating a revenue stream.

Archi-Post was conceived as a series of postcards that highlight the architecture and built environment of Hampton Roads. The program will engage young architects to document buildings, details, and other significant architectural elements through photos, sketches, renderings, and other images. Once the documentation is complete, the postcard sets will be marketed and sold to local and regional merchants to create revenue for the program. The inaugural series will explore historic, Modern, and residential architecture, and the chapter plans to reproduce and build on it in subsequent years. The jury commented that they “liked the creativity of finding a way to connect communities together.”

Worthy submissions
In addition to awarding the grant to AIA Hampton Roads, the jury felt that the New York and Houston chapters deserved special recognition for their proposals. The Emerging New York Architects proposed hosting an international competition—for designers with fewer than 10 years experience—to generate ideas for the restoration and adaptive reuse of the Smallpox Hospital ruins, located at the southern tip of Roosevelt Island. The primary goals of the program are to provide young architects an opportunity for leadership, recognition, and collaboration and develop opportunities to work with nonprofit, government, and community organizations. The jury called this “a worthy submission,” but felt that it would move ahead with or without their support.

The AIA Houston chapter submitted a proposal for FORUM: Young Architects and the Legacy of Ben Brewer, FAIA. Brewer devoted much of his career to mentoring young architects, and, as president of the AIA in 1989, he started the Young Architects Forum. The chapter proposed highlighting the role of Fellows in mentoring, providing public discussion of the charge of the AIA and YAF in fostering emerging professionals’ development, and creating a publication to spotlight contributions and successes of Houston’s Young Architect Award recipients from the last 20 years. The jury praised the chapter’s “great mentorship, blending, and stimulus for Young Architects.”

—Heather Livingston

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