The Student Perspective : CUBA

This year's Spring Studio, The International Design Exchange (INDEX) Studio is a graduate design studio established to build an understanding of global urban issues.The studio explores strategies for urban regeneration revealed through a comparative analysis of Cleveland, Ohio and Havana, Cuba. The studio functions as a timely conduit for the exchange of ideas between the two cities. As part of the studio, four graduate students traveled to Cuba, during spring break, to strengthen the research and relationships established with architects and architecture students and the University of Havana. Two of the students, Reuben Shaw II and Randy Hoover, shared their experience and work with us. Here is their perspective:Reuben Shaw II, Master of Landscape Architecturereuben_cubaCuba was never on my list of countries to visit. Stories about the taboos of the society and the government subconsciously blocked this island nation from my view. I’ve visited a few of the Caribbean Islands but still, Cuba was invisible. During my stay in Havana, I realized that Cuba was one of the most unique and beautiful places I have ever been, not only aesthetically, but culturally and socially. The proverb, “Better to see something once than hear about it a thousand times” became a reality.reuben_cuba_2Fanguito neighborhood in Havana, CubaWhile working on the Havana studio project in Cleveland, it was a challenge to really grasp our site with aerials; as landscape architecture students, most of our taught site-analysis techniques were void. Flying to Cuba and walking the streets of the Fanguito neighborhood really gave us a perspective that added to our repertoire. We discovered a sense of place that was generated by the people and an empirical expression of culture that you could only get by asking questions and adopting the lifestyle of the residents.This opportunity to travel to Cuba was truly inspiring and has fueled my desire to travel and experience other cultures. I believe when you travel you learn as much about yourself as you do about the place. Knowledge of self not only enriches your being but that of the people around you.Flamingo Final 2Proposed wetland preserve and aquatic bird habitat along the Almendares River in Havana, CubaRandy Hoover, Master of Architecturerandy_hoover_headshotFive days is a short time in which one can be expected to engage with the unique cultural and economic values in a city like Havana, but I believe this trip was successful in that regard. Stepping out onto Cuban soil was not, as some of my friends back home predicted, like stepping back in time to a land where technology and science ceased to progress. Once you look past the aesthetic value of colorful old cars on the road you begin to see Cuba’s development over the last decades as an alternate timeline, similar to our own, where resources are more scarce but vitality and variety of life are never sacrificed.(Now don’t get me wrong, riding from one side of Havana to the other in a candy-coated Pontiac is something that should be experienced by every visitor to the island.)Our studio design/research project for the semester focused on an intervention near the Almendares River in El Vedado district of Havana. This land is known as the less affluent part of town and in every way but its social structure can be considered a slum. In order to operate from thousands of miles away with little on-site experience, our group focused on projective interventions that could be built by accretion and overlay of infrastructural services. By developing a simple self-built housing prototype that connected its infrastructure to a central square, we could game out the look of our neighborhood intervention in abstraction without bulldozing over the existing social and economic complexities of the neighborhood.ISO PLAN smallCuadriculita 008: The central concrete pad provides infrastructural connections for surrounding residents.The realistic conditions of a site are, of course, more complex than what can be assumed from a satellite image or journal article. When we walked through the neighborhood of El Fanguito we were greeted by complete strangers with smiles and welcome conversation with our inquiring minds. Narrow alleyways and informal sidewalks contributed to a set of streetscapes that functioned almost identically to the winding paths we suggested in the Cuadriculita proposal, except of course that it was constructed with more care, personality, and efficiency. Once we walked out of the neighborhood and up the hill to a grand vista that overlooked all of the informal housing, my perspective of the project completely shifted.IMG_1435A small cluster of housing built against the peculiar topography separating El Fanguito from El Vedado.I expected this moment, of course, but maybe not in such an instantaneous fashion. The infrastructural connections were not perfect in every way but formed its own artistry out of the imperfections. Overlap of aesthetics and use-value with the homes were most apparent with bright blue water storage barrels and pigeon cages on some of the rooftops feeding PVC piping down into the invisible pathways and living spaces below. Our project’s assertion that an interior courtyard or open space was required in order to have a vibrant and connected lifestyle for each resident was dissolved after seeing this.This INDEX studio travel opportunity is something that I will remember for the rest of my life. I was able to meet Cuban architectural contemporaries, sample the passionate lifestyle of residents, and bond with my trip-mates in sharing this experience of infinite value. I’d like to thank David Jurca, the CUDC, and Kent State University for this amazing opportunity. The INDEX: CLExHAV Studio is part of the 2017 Creative Fusion program supported by The Cleveland Foundation. During the 2017 Spring Semester, the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC) will continue a partnership launched by Kent State University last year with Havana-based architects Sofía Márquez Aguiar and Ernesto Jiménez of Fábrica De Arte Cubano (Cuban Art Factory), a vibrant community arts space housed in a repurposed cooking oil plant in Havana. The architects will work with the KSU Urban Design and Landscape Architecture graduate studio and a Cleveland Institute of Art Interior Architecture studio on design proposals for two neighborhood projects: one in Havana’s Vedado neighborhood, where Fábrica De Arte Cubano is located, and another in Cleveland’s Glenville neighborhood. In early April, Márquez Aguiar and Jiménez arrived in Cleveland to review the students’ design proposals for Vedado and will remain in Cleveland for one month as they work with students to generate and fabricate the project to be built in Glenville. A public Pop Up Event is scheduled at the Glenville site (1470 E. 105th, Cleveland) on Friday, May 5th from 6-9pm. All are welcome. Learn more and RSVP on the Facebook event page here: https://www.facebook.com/events/532579883796334/ 

We’re Hiring | Post Graduate Fellow (Urban Design)

we-re hiring_2015_560pxKent State University’s Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC) has a one-year position available for recent graduates holding a Master’s degree in Architecture, Urban Design, Landscape Architecture, or Planning. Eligible candidates must have graduated from a graduate program in one of these fields in 2016 or 2017. This is a full-time position with benefits, available beginning on September 1, 2017 or after.Job Responsibilities

  • Working on urban design and planning projects for community clients, under the direction of CUDC senior staff
  • Supporting the Making Our Own Space (MOOS) design/build initiative for middle- and high-school students
  • Developing research proposals
  • Assisting with the organization and logistics of the annual community design charrette in the fall of 2017
  • Participating in graduate-level design juries and advising graduate students on their Capstone projects
  • Other tasks as assigned by CUDC staff

 The Fellow will also develop a project of his or her choice, to be completed during the fellowship year. Examples of past projects include:

  • Presenting design work and research on environmental psychology in urban design at a conference of the Association for Community Design
  • Developing climate resilient street sections, expanding upon the City of Cleveland’s Complete and Green Street Guidelines, as part of the CUDC’s neighborhood climate resilience initiative.

 Other potential fellowship project ideas include:

  • Planning and deploying a temporary installation or event
  • Entering a design competition or creating a design competition
  • Curating an exhibition for the CUDC gallery
  • Presenting work at a conference
  • Organizing a lecture, workshop, or other events

 The Fellow’s project will be developed with the full support of CUDC staff. Up to 10% of the Fellow’s time (four hours per week) will be devoted to his or her project.

EligibilityThe Fellowship position is available to any graduate of a Master’s degree in Architecture, Urban Design, Landscape Architecture, or Planning program who completed his or her degree in 2016 or 2017. The CUDC will select one Fellow from the pool of applicants.

Application ProcessTo be considered for the Post Graduate Fellowship, please submit:

  • Application through the Kent State University website: https://jobs.kent.edu/postings/13424/
  • Resume
  • Portfolio
  • Letter of intent – in 500 words or less, please describe why you are interested in working at the CUDC and outline your idea for an independent project to be completed during your fellowship year. Please note that you do not need to have a fully developed proposal for your project, just an initial idea or a general direction you would like to pursue. CUDC will work with you during the first three months of the fellowship to develop your project idea, secure supplemental funding (if needed), and prepare a timeline for implementing the project within the fellowship year.

The application deadline is 5:00 p.m. Friday, June 2, 2017. Late applications will not be accepted.

In addition to your application through the Kent State University website, please submit your resume, portfolio, and letter of intent in PDF format to cudc@kent.edu. If your portfolio is too large to email, please share it with cudc@kent.edu using DropBox (https://www.dropbox.com).

Selection CriteriaApplicants will be evaluated based on:

  • Academic performance
  • Work experience
  • Quality of portfolio
  • Clarity of intent

Kent State University, an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer is committed to attaining excellence through the recruitment and retention of a diverse work force. Women, minorities, veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. If you require assistance, please contact Kent State University’s Employment Office at 330-672-2100 or by email at employment@kent.edu.

Salary$40,000 per year. The Post Graduate Fellow will be a full-time employee of Kent State University, with a full benefits package. The position is a one-year appointment; the period of employment will not be extended beyond one year. This is an administrative position, which does not include the possibility of tenure.

Questions?Contact David Jurca at djurca@kent.edu

Hingetown Tour | April 28 | 12-1 PM

HT_1For our last "lecture" of the Spring Series, we will be going on a tour of Hingetown to view and discuss the community projects happening in this neighborhood in Ohio City. Join us April 28, 2017, at 12 PM. The tour will begin at the corner of 29th & Detroit Ave. and will last about an hour. Our tour guides will be Marika Shioiri-Clark & Graham Veysey both residents and developers of this neighborhood. Stops on the tour will include the Striebinger block, the Print Shop buildings, few of the Creative Fusion murals, as well as, the new Spaces Gallery and the Transformer Station.HT_2CHURCH AND STATE 1Marika Shioiri-Clark and Graham Veysey spend their days in a 140-year-old firehouse in Hingetown – part of the Ohio City neighborhood. As neighborhood developers and designers, Marika and Graham converted the vacant Ohio City Firehouse into a vibrant mixed-used building with a coffee shop, florist, and collection of offices. Graham and Marika developed the block kitty-corner from the Firehouse into a vibrant retail and residential building just completed a third project called the Print Shop, and have been involved in planning numerous public events in the area. Called Hingetown, their work often focuses on connections and collaborations through the arts to promote public space and walkability across the near west side of Cleveland.t-private-lives-hingetown-peter-lawson-graham-veysey-marika-shiori-clark-vfPhoto credit: Peter LarsonHingtown TourApril 28, 201712-1 PM29th & Detroit Ave.Cleveland, OH 44113HT_3

Mapping the Design Journey

by Jacinda WalkerFounder, designExplorr.com 

Design Journeys: Strategies for Increasing Diversity in Design Disciplines from Jacinda Walker on Vimeo.

The journey to a career can be met with great success or great struggle. When a traveler is prepared for the journey, they typically cover more distance and the experiences they encounter become quick stops along the way— moments of pause that, with rest and refueling, allow them to begin again. However, for a traveler who is less prepared to face the bumps, twists, and turns of the road, minor challenges become major roadblocks. Those minor challenges become permanent barricades that ultimately inhibit travel and one’s likelihood to continue on the path of success. Unfortunately, the latter path described here is all too common among young African American and Latino youth who seek a design-related career.This line of inquiry led me to visualize what the journey to becoming a designer looks like and analyze what tools are needed to obtain a design-related career. My research work entitled, Design Journeys: Strategies for Increasing Diversity in Design Disciplines (2016) explores diversity in design disciplines and presents fifteen strategic ideas to expose African American and Latino youth to design-related careers. This solutions-based thesis introduces a map charting a design career from grade school to a seasoned professional. The “Design Journey Map” contains four color-coded passages: foundations, proficiency, workforce, and influence. The passages overlap with career competency components to cultivate soft skills together with the hard skills youth learn along the journey to a design career.designJourney-ReDraw4Figure 1: The Design Journey Map in fullThe Design Journey Map is a simple navigational tool that can be used as a framework to better inform students, parents, professionals and organizations which strategic ideas are needed and where to place them along the career path to increase diversity in design disciplines.This framework is important because it shows the journey to become a designer and provides four principles of a strategic solution for closing the diversity gap in the design industry. The principles address the complex problem of a lack of diversity in design by identifying characteristics of a strategic solution needed for helping to close the diversity gap in design. They are labeled as comprehensive, collaborative, local, and scholastic. These Design Principles help to ensure long-term success for programs and initiatives whose intent is to expose African American and Latino youth to design-related careers.design Principles characteristics to solution-01Figure 2: The four Design Principles for a strategic solutionThe process of closing the gap in design is especially complex due to underlying problems at both ends of the career path. Problems on one end of the career path relate to access and exposure, which impacts course offerings and instruction for African American and Latino youth in their local community schools. The problems on the other end relate to the opportunities provided to professionals of color, which are limited due to systemic prejudices, especially among those who monitor the distribution and application of funding for education. Linear_Chart_ddFigure 3: The Multiple Problems in DesignIn Designing for Diversity: Implications for Architectural Education in the Twenty-First Century (2002), Dr. Kathryn H. Anthony, Distinguished Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, suggests that in order to guarantee long-lasting and continuous improvement, schools and organizations need to work strategically by developing more diversity-building initiatives. Developing diversity-building initiatives will improve industry experiences for novice African American and Latino designers, ensuring that they meet greater career success and create more opportunities along the pipeline. One such diversity-building initiative in northeast Ohio is Design Diversity.designDiversity LogoFigure 4: Design Diversity logoDesign Diversity is an initiative launched in late 2013 by the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC) and led in partnership with a multidisciplinary advisory committee. Through self-initiated projects and in collaboration with existing organizations, their goal is to foster learning, influence growth, and promote people of color in the design professions in Northeast Ohio. As a researcher, I am pleased to partner with the advisory committee by working in tandem to help bring their latest project to fruition.The Design Diversity Index is a tool for measuring progress toward achieving diversity goals. The index will collect, maintain and aggregate data on the number of African Americans and Latinos from design schools, programs, and professional organizations and integrate a range of disciplines that include architecture, landscape architecture, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, and urban design. The Design Index benefits students, parents, and organizations by providing access to aggregated state-based data from regional educational institutions and creates opportunities for reminding other stakeholders about the necessity to increase diversity in design disciplines.Addressing the lack of diversity in design is not a simple problem. The issue is that many are trying to solve a single problem when there are actually multiple problems on both ends of the journey. The challenge many African American and Latino youth face in the beginning of the journey is they simply do not know what to look for. In addition, parents of these creative youth also do not have adequate information to make informed decisions. Lastly, organizations can benefit by having such information centralized. This challenge continues to be recognized as a complex problem, but it still exists because there is a lack of access to the information available to solve it. Tools such as the Design Journey Map in conjunction with the Design Diversity Index are sorely needed to help stabilize the multiple problems along the journey. This initiative seeks to provide aggregated data to give students, parents, and organizations more information to make better decisions about design-related careers. To learn more about Design Diversity, future events and to receive the latest news on the Design Diversity Index log onto designdiversity.org.0236AIGAAbout Jacinda WalkerJacinda Walker is the founder of designExplorr, an organization that celebrates design learning by creating opportunities to introduce youth to design and partners with professionals, parents, and teachers who are passionate about bringing diversity to the industry in a powerful way. With over 20 years as a designer, entrepreneur, and instructor, her work ranges from designing corporate communications to developing educational programs and event management. She earned both her A.A.B. and B.F.A. in graphic design from the University of Akron and a M.F.A in Design Research and Development with a minor in Nonprofit Studies from The Ohio State University. Her research explores diversity in design disciplines and presents strategies to expose underrepresented youth to design-related careers. Her future goals include working with organizations to establish design education initiatives and developing design programs for underrepresented youth.

Samantha Ayotte | April 07

samantha_ayotteOn April 7, 2017, we welcome Samantha Ayotte to our Spring Lecture Series. Her talk, "My Birthright", will present findings from her cultural exploration through Israel for her Birthright trip. There will be a discussion about how cultural, political, and religious experiences can differ and how they can provide solutions for contemporary living.thumb_IMG_9576_1024Samantha Ayotte is a second-year dual degree (M.Arch, M.UD) candidate from Cleveland, Ohio. She holds an undergraduate degree in Architecture from Kent State University. She enjoys the opportunity to design and understand urban design challenges and solutions for cities like Cleveland through contemporary means of investigation. She believes communities and shared experiences can positively impact urban design, and her work thus far has aimed to implement those elements.thumb_IMG_0190_1024Please join us from 12 PM - 1PM, Friday, April 7th. This event is free and open to the public.Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative1309 Euclid Ave., Suite 200Cleveland, OH 44115

Fresh Talk: Women Arts and Social Change | April 12

freshtalkIn Cleveland, creative leaders are impacting lives and reshaping economies through bold public arts and urban design initiatives. Join the conversation with Marika Shioiri-Clark, Global Designer for Social Impact and Principal of SOSHL Studio; Jennifer Coleman, Architect and Senior Program Officer for the Arts at the Gund Foundation; Lillian Kuri, Strategic Innovator through Arts and Design and Vice President of the Cleveland Foundation; Terry Schwarz, Director of the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative at Kent State University and Founder of its Shrinking Cities Institute; and Ann Zoller, Local and National Advocate for Revitalizing Public Spaces and long-time Executive Director of LAND Studio. Susan Fisher Sterling, Director of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, based in Washington, DC, will moderate.This event is FREE and open to the public, but space is extremely limited. Tickets are required for entry. RSVPs will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis until capacity is reached. Please register HERE.Date and TimeWed, April 12, 20176:00 PM – 8:00 PMLocationMOCA Cleveland11400 Euclid AvenueCleveland, OH 44106This FRESH TALK outreach event is presented by the Ohio Advisory Group of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. FRESH TALK is the signature program of the museum’s Women, Arts, and Social Change initiative. Sponsored by the Cleveland Foundation with generous in-kind support from MOCA Cleveland and Gries Financial LLC.

CUDC welcomes a new Office Manager!

April_JamesThe CUDC would like to welcome our new Office Manager, April James.  April's previous experience has been working in various academic and student services departments within higher education such as counseling & student affairs, business services, and adult higher education. April received her Bachelor’s degree from Illinois State University in Mass Communication. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Education with a concentration in Higher Education Administration from Tiffin University.We are excited to have April on our team and please contact her for any administrative inquiries.

Conner Karakul | Mar 10

conner_k_headshotWe will be switching things up a little bit this week for our Spring Lecture Series. Conner Karakul will be presenting a short film, Where Land Meets Water-An exploration of Norwegian urban shorelines and Oslo Harbor's path from industry to access. Following the film will be a discussion on Cleveland's cultural and physical relationship with its waterways- current status and future goals.Industrial to AccessibleConner Karakul is a third year Master of Landscape Architecture candidate from Cleveland Heights, Ohio. He holds an undergraduate degree in Political Science with a minor in Environmental Studies from Kenyon College. As a member of KSU's College of Architecture and Environmental Design's inaugural MLA program cohort, Conner enjoys the opportunity to work on and understand the challenges and potential for creating healthy, strong communities in Legacy Cities. He believes landscape architecture can play a fundamental role. His work so far aims to embed ecological beauty and function into the complexities of urban areas through thoughtful design that celebrates the arts, culture, and ecology of a place.Please join us from 12 PM - 1PM, Friday, March 10th. This event is free and open to the public.Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative1309 Euclid Ave., Suite 200Cleveland, OH 44115 

Your Local Library: Seeking Input!

DSC_1138On Thursday, January 26th, CUDC staff kicked off the first round of public Open Houses for the third group of library branches in our CPL150 project. The CUDC has been working with the Cleveland Public Library since fall of 2014 on community engagement around its neighborhood branches.The CPL system is comprised of 27 branches, and each has very different community needs; CPL recognizes that each branch should respond to those needs locally, rather than just system-wide. What improvements are needed? How should each branch respond to its local opportunities and characteristics? And how can each branch respond to changing technological needs to become a 21st-century resource for its community?DSC_1151The first Group 3 open house, at West Park Branch, broke participants into a series of workstations throughout the library itself. Balloons marked each station, asking questions around the branch’s building; grounds; neighborhood; and services. We gathered input on existing conditions, ideas for integrating new technology & educational tools, neighborhood assets, partnerships, and services. We also had participants fill out our online survey (which is open to any CPL user, no matter their local branch – please fill out if you’re interested!).DSC_1146DSC_1155Since then, we’ve also held open houses at Eastman Branch and Hough Branch, and still have two more: Union Branch (Feb 23rd, 4:30-7:00 PM) and Walz Branch (March 7th, 4:00-7:00 PM).After this round of open houses, we’ll input our feedback and start generating initial design alternatives for each branch, which we’ll present to the communities in a second round of public sessions, in May of this year, in preparation for final recommendations & report, which will be released in June 2017.Please check out the project website for updates. We hope to see you at your local branch!

Jonathan Hanna | Mar 03

Jonny_HannaOn Friday, March 3rd, from 12-1 PM, we welcome Jonathan Hanna to our Spring Lecture Series. Jonathan Hanna is the Post Graduate Fellow at the CUDC. He earned his B.S. Architecture and Master of Urban Design from the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan. He has worked at various design firms in and around the Detroit area.renderingPrior to coming to the CUDC Jonny worked for A(n) Office on the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale for the U.S. Pavilion. Jonny's talk, "Unitary Urbanism: Co-Optive Streets and Situations", will be discussing his fellowship project “Forget Me Not” and his past work leading up to the fellowship, as framed by the Unitary Urbanism movement of the 1950’s and 60’s. Central to the theme of the talk is the latent potential of streets and situation for the leveraging of socio-political power.Please join us from 12 PM - 1Pm, Friday, March 3rd. This event is free and open to the public.Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative1309 Euclid Ave., Suite 200Cleveland, OH 44115  

Students from Cleveland Compete in National ULI Competition

IMG_4532This past month, graduate students from Kent State University, Cleveland State University, and Case Western Reserve University collaborated to partake in the ULI Gerald D. Hines Urban Design Competition. The competition asked students from design, planning, and finance backgrounds to join forces and produce a feasible real estate pro forma and design concept for a site on Chicago’s north side. The 25-acre site, situated along the Chicago River is part of a planned manufacturing district, while also seeing development pressure for housing and tech development. Students worked to produce schemes that included flex industrial space, university partnerships, transit-oriented development, affordable housing, and other development proposals. Teams also connected to Chicago’s new multi-use trail, the 606, crossing the river to create regional connections.ULI_Hines-Chicago_016_carouselsmallIMG_4537Students worked in teams of five at the CUDC throughout the two-week process. Professionals from the local community including architects, planners, developers, and bankers all participated as advisors and critics throughout the process. Evening feedback sessions had students present their work to these audiences to gauge feasibility and clarity in their concepts. The local Cleveland ULI chapter helps sponsor the event each year. Four teams in total participated this year from five six different disciplinary backgrounds. Teams from the Cleveland cohort then submitted their proposals to compete in the national competition. Results from the national competition will be released later this month.

Chris Maurer | Feb 24

IMG_6147Friday, February 24, 2017, at noon, we will welcome Chris Maurer to our Spring Lecture Series. Chris Maurer, principal of redhouse studio, will be talking about his projects in the developing world, the design / REbuild project* in Cleveland, and how working in limited resource environments can shape innovation.Chris has worked as an architect in New York City, Anchorage, Florence, Kigali, and Lilongwe. In New York, Chris was director at studioMDA under Markus Dochantschi protégé to Pritzker Prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid. In Africa, Chris served as director for studioMDA and MASS Design Group and designed and built many humanitarian projects for such clients as Madonna, Partners in Health, the UN Millennium Village Project, the Clinton Global Initiative, and Malaika.add waterJimi embededChris founded redhouse studio in 2013 in Cleveland, Ohio. redhouse engages in all facets of architecture including research and innovation in low impact material technologies, design, fabrication, and humanitarian work spanning the globe. He teaches from time to time at Kent State University advocating for students to get involved with humanitarian causes and innovate for brighter futures.*The CUDC has compiled a booked of photographer Helen Liggett's images from the design / REbuild house. We will be previewing the book at Chris's talk. Please join us from 12 PM - 1Pm, Friday, February 24th. This event is free and open to the public.Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative1309 Euclid Ave., Suite 200Cleveland, OH 44115IMG_1134DSCN3475 

Mabel O. Wilson | Feb 09

Mabel Wilson headshot_560_bwOn Thursday, February 9th, we welcome Mabel O. Wilson to our Spring Lecture Series. Mabel's talk, "Building Racial States", will address race and nation-state formation and its implication in current social movements.Mabel O. Wilson is a Professor of Architecture at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation where she co-directs the Global Africa Lab and appointed as a Research Fellow at the Institute for Research in African-American Studies. She has authored Begin with the Past: Building the National Museum of African American History and Culture (2016) and Negro Building: African Americans in the World of Fairs and Museums (2012). Exhibitions of her work have been featured at the Art Institute of Chicago, Istanbul Design Biennale, Wexner Center for the Arts, and the Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum’s Triennial. She is a founding member of Who Builds Your Architecture?—an advocacy project to educate the architectural profession about the problems of globalization and labor.Mabel will also be speaking at the College of Architecture & Environmental Design at the Cene Lecture Hall at 5:30 PM, in Kent, OH. Her evening lecture is titled, "Notes on the Virginia Statehouse: Slavery, Race, and Jefferson's America".This event is free and open to the public. RSVP isn't required, but it is requested. Please RSVP HERE.Thursday, February 9, 2017Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative1309 Euclid Ave., Suite 200Cleveland, OH 44115

We're Hiring a Part-Time Office Manager

we-re hiring_2015_560pxThe College of Architecture and Environmental Design (CAED) at Kent State University is seeking applicants for a part-time Administrative Clerk/Office Manager at our downtown Cleveland facility.  This position will provide part-time administrative, budget, and clerical support to the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative, located in downtown Cleveland. The office manager will maintain all budget documents for projects and the facility; schedule meetings; make sure CUDC is open for business; greet visitors; grant front door entries; assist with student concerns.Bookkeeping knowledge is required.Position is Part-Time, 20 hours per week.Monday through Friday, 8:30 am – 12:30 pm preferred.Submit all required materials as an on-line application to KSU Human Resources.To complete the process, go to: https://jobs.kent.edu/ (Position#998181)Kent State University is an Equal Opportunity Employer