by Marshall Purnell, FAIA
AIA President

I want to talk to you about an opportunity unique to architects.

Our discipline is about possibilities. We don’t hitch our star to what exists; we deal with what’s to come. The design process—our core competency—guides those who use it to new horizons of possibility.

We routinely do that for our clients and communities. That’s our gift to the future. But think how much more we could leverage the shape of that future by sharing this gift, sharing it with young people, young people who by their very nature stand at the intersection of what is and what could be?

I’ve been thinking a lot about leveraging that better future ever since I spoke to the CHAD graduating class last June.

What is CHAD?
CHAD is an acronym for Charter High school for Architecture and Design, a very special Philadelphia charter high school. The school uses architecture and design as a teaching methodology that weaves principles of design into all academic disciplines.

There aren’t many hopeful stories that come out of inner city schools. The first charter high school in the nation for architecture and design, which was founded by the AIA Philadelphia component, is a brilliant exception.

The curriculum is taught by a dedicated faculty. They get help—lots of it—from AIA Philadelphia and local design professionals—architects, urban planners, landscape architects, interior designers, and artists—who volunteer their time.

This is no exercise in touchy-feely art appreciation, although a passionate love of architecture and design is something everyone shares.

A higher standard
The 570 kids who are accepted into this tuition-free program aren’t recruited from Philadelphia’s Main Line. They’re drawn from the inner city.

Some come from stable homes. Many don’t. And college degrees are rarer than … well … I really can’t think of any comparison. Let me put it this way: the soil out of which these kids grow is pretty thin stuff.

Studies aren’t easy.

Students are held to a higher standard than their peers in other area schools. A contract among the parents, students, and school includes strict codes of conduct, attendance, and uniform dress. Respect for their teachers, for the school, and for one another is not so much enforced, it’s expected.

Does it pay off?
Here are some facts:

• The average daily attendance rate is 95 percent. That compares to 63 percent city-wide. Students advance through school based on performance, not age. CHAD’s passing grade is 70. For the rest of the city, it’s 65.
• What about the drop-out rate? It’s less than one percent, and the latest statistics indicate that 97 percent—97 percent!—graduate and go on to college.

What’s it to you?
Few communities have schools like CHAD. But young people are everywhere.

Think about that teacher or coach or minister who turned your life around. You could be that person for someone else. Get engaged with the future not only in your studio; get engaged in the classroom and on the street.

There are national resources to help you. These include the AIA’s “Shadow an Architect” initiative and the ACE Mentoring Program. Many AIA components and firms sponsor initiatives that reach out to young people at the local level. If you don’t know about them, check it out.

The resources are there. All that’s needed to make the magic happen is you and kids who’ve been told all their lives they won’t amount to anything.

That doesn’t have to be their future. You can make a difference.

Go for it!