Chris White/AIA Oregon Scholarship for Emerging Professionals

The Chris White/AIA Oregon Scholarship for Emerging Professionals is an annual award up to $1,000 per recipient to one or more selected first-time architecture license candidates in Oregon through application and committee review. Proceeds from the annual Chris White / AIA Oregon Scholarship Golf Tournament, started in 2015, along with individual and corporate contributions are used to fund the scholarship. 

The scholarship remembers Portland architect, Chris White, AIA, who served consistently throughout his career as a mentor to many new and aspiring architects until he passed in 2014 following a battle with cancer. The scholarship is intended to help offset financial barriers to licensure, including those costs associated with education, training and exams often encountered by emerging professionals pursuing their first license to practice architecture.

Applications will be evaluated by AIA Oregon's Chris White Scholarship Committee appointed by the Chapter President.

Applications will be assessed based on the criteria listed below with selected applicants receiving up to $1,000 from the scholarship fund. The number of scholarship recipients may vary from year to year based on the discretion of the AIA Oregon Board of Directors.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following criteria to be eligible for the scholarship:

  • Pursuing their first architecture license.

  • Enrolled in NCARB's Architectural Experience Program (AXP) or completed.  If complete, provide documentation.

  • Authorized by NCARB to sit for the ARE.

  • An Associate Member of the American Institute of Architects (Assoc. AIA).

  • Their employer, if employed, does not provide financial assistance for taking the AREs.

Application Materials

  1. Application form.

  2. Proof of Approval to sit for the Architect Registration from OSBAE.

  3. Proof of AXP status.

  4. Letters of Reference maximum one page each, dated, signed and on letterhead.

    a.     AIA Oregon member architects:  minimum one, maximum two
    b.     Peer or colleague: minimum one, maximum two.

  5. Applicant's Letter of Interest, two pages maximum, signed and dated, addressing the following:

a.     Service to community - cite specific examples of leadership and contributions.
b.     Membership in the AIA - including involvement with the AIA, committees, initiatives, and contributions to AIA's mission.
c.     The profession of Architecture and the value of licensure.
d.     The role of architects in creating a more sustainable and resilient world.
e.     Statement summarizing their employer’s assistance related to taking the AREs.

Submission Process and Schedule - Submissions Open September 1, 2023

  1. Applications are to be submitted in PDF form via email to AIA Oregon staff.

  2. Applications must not exceed seven pages (8 ½" x 11'').

  3. Applications are due by 5:00 PM, Friday, November 1 2024

  4. Selected Applicants will be notified on or before Monday, November 11, 2024.

  5. Selected scholarship recipients will be announced at the Oregon Architecture Awards Celebration on Thursday, November 14, 2024.

  6. Scholarship funds will be distributed by mail to selected applicants between January 1 and April 4, 2025.

  7. Recipients will be expected to provide a summary demonstrating the use of the funds by May 2, 2025.

Christopher White, AIA graduated from St. Sebastian's High School and received a B.S. in Architectural Engineering from Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston. Chris was a member of the American Institute of Architects and an associate principal at Opsis Architecture, Portland, where he led significant projects at Oregon State and Western Oregon universities and acted as a mentor and manager with more than 23 years of experience in engineering and architecture. He was a firm believer in the mentorship and development of emerging architects, a cause he supported throughout his career.