Collaborative Studio effort wins national recognition

The Applied Research Collaborative Studio in the School of Architecture + Landscape Architecture is the winner of the prestigious National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) prize for 2008.

ASU was one of five winners this year receiving $7,500 for the work done in collaboration with the School of Sustainability and the University Architects’ office on the adaptive re-use of the old Nursing Building. This was the first year that the transdisciplinary Applied Research Studio was conducted, and the project was recognized for it collaborative excellence.

The Applied Research Collaborative Studio is a transdisciplinary design graduate thesis studio that includes students from the various schools and departments in the College of Design—Architecture, Energy, Industrial Design, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Planning, and Visual Communication Design. In turn, these students collaborated with faculty and administrators from the College of Design, Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering, Global Institute of Sustainability, School of Sustainabiity, Nursing, and the University Architects’ office.

Six prize winners were selected for awards. The NCARB Prize Grand Prize—a cash award of $25,000—will be presented to the Department of Architecture, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Five submissions were selected as NCARB Prize winners and recipients of $7,500 each: individual submissions from the School of Architecture, Arizona State University, and the Department of Architecture, the Savannah College of Art and Design; a joint submission from the School of Architecture, University of Arkansas, and the School of Architecture, Washington University in St. Louis; and two submissions from the School of Architecture, Clemson University.

The 2008 NCARB Prize jury is comprised of members of the Council's Practice Education Committee and six academic representatives (deans, heads, or chairs) from schools with architecture programs accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) nominated by NCARB's regional leadership. The jury considered 31 entries representing 22 different colleges and universities. when they met March 26–27, 2008 in Houston, Texas.

Both entries and jurors were divided into two groups based on regional location. Each team evaluated a set of anonymous submissions and selected finalists, which were then reviewed by the entire jury. The jury’s decision was announced during the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) Annual Meeting Awards Ceremony, March 28, 2008 in Houston, Texas.