by Russell Boniface
Associate Editor

Summary: Paul Mendelsohn, vice president of Government and Community Affairs, presented a $2,500 check May 1 at the AIA Convention to Dominic Sims, chief operating officer of the International Code Council (ICC), for its “Code of Honor” Scholarship offered to its members. The money donated by the AIA will go directly to ICC members who are also licensed members of the AIA.

The ICC, based in Washington D.C., is offering a new “Code of Honor” scholarship program under its ICC Foundation’s professional development initiative. Selection of the scholarship recipients will be administered by the ICC Foundation through a blind qualification process. Scholarship recipients will be paid on a cost-reimbursement basis of up to $2,000. The Code of Honor program helps to underwrite costs for ICC governmental members to attend and participate in the code development process, especially the Final Action Hearings, which is a key element of the consensus process for revising the model building codes.

“The AIA has been a longtime supporter of the ICC model codes and the consensus process,” Mendelsohn said. “We value the role that ICC members who happen to be architects play in that consensus process and want to encourage them to attend and participate in that process. Therefore, we have established a strategic relationship with the ICC and are growing the relationship through the donation of this scholarship to the ICC Foundation.”

"We are grateful for this generous contribution to the International Code Council Foundation Professional Scholarship program,” said Sims. “AIA remains a strong and valued partner for both the International Code Council and the ICC Foundation."