During my time as a job captain working on academic design projects with DOWA-IBI Group Architects, and my previous experience as the Program Manager for Project H Design, a nonprofit organization geared toward youth empowerment and community engagement through a design-build curriculum, I have had numerous opportunities to speak with school districts, educators, and students about the broad spectrum of environments needed to support the modern learner. By attending the CAE Fall Conference, I hope to learn more about how other architecture firms and school districts across the country have risen to the challenge from our students to integrate a variety of modalities into their learning environment. I have found that coming together to hear about the experiences, successes, and failures of fellow designers, as well as clients, is one of the strongest means to grow as a collective field and improve the services we provide to our nation’s students. I am honored to represent DOWA-IBI Group at this year’s conference and welcome the opportunity to share my conference journey via AIA KnowledgeNet and with the Portland design community during the conference and upon my return.
For a bit more information on background and interests, here is my bio as submitted with my CAE Knowledge Scholarship application:
Rebecca is an architectural designer and maker who believes in the power of design to transform communities. She has had a versatile career in the building industry, always focusing on how the architecture and construction fields can collaborate with other industries to support healthy communities. She loves being part of DOWA-IBI Group, where she is able to explore the ever-changing world of K-12 education and collaborate with DOWA’s team of outside-the-box thinkers. She has previously enjoyed serving as Program Manager for Project H Design, where she managed their design-build program for students ages 9-18 and oversaw the construction of two tiny homes, one of which was donated to a transitional housing agency. She has more than seven years of Construction Management experience, including working for Marmol Radziner in Los Angeles and Kudos Construction in New York. Rebecca has a degree in Urban Design from New York University and a Master of Architecture from the University of Oregon, where she helped lead a team of student designers in an ongoing Passive House Retrofit with the Center for the Advancement of Sustainable Living.