Jen Wright, AIA is the Section Director for AIA Portland and Colin Dean, AIA is the Section Director for AIA Eugene. For more about them, go to the Leadership Messages on the AIA Oregon website. Jen’s message is dated February 6 and Colin’s message is dated January 16. They wrote this message on behalf of the AIA Oregon Design Awards Task Force.
The Design Awards Task Force was formed earlier this spring to evaluate the various AIAO design recognition programs, such as the Portland Architectural Awards and the Eugene People’s Choice Awards, to assure they are being implemented in a way that supports their defined purpose and are properly coordinated Chapter-wide. Acknowledging the move away from in-person events, it was critical to understand the purpose and objective behind these events in order to successfully adapt to a virtual environment. Taking the time to align these programs with the initiatives established by the AIAO Board of Directors was seen as a valuable way to move forward, beyond 2020, with awards programs and events celebrating design that are holistically inclusive of a State chapter with five sections embodying their own unique character.
Comprised of 16 AIAO member volunteers, four staff members and three section directors (Portland, Eugene & Bend) - the Task Force endeavored to be a reflection of the broad range of professionals within the Oregon chapter. Collectively the group brought their individual experience as design advocates, past award program participants, planners & jurors to the table to evaluate the awards programs over the course of four consecutive meetings. The initial meeting on May 28th consisted of clarifying the objectives of the task force and focusing on current design programs in Oregon and other select programs from other chapters throughout the country. The second meeting, occurring on June 10th, had the group reviewing precedent programs which had designated awards aligned with criteria based on AIA National’s Framework for Design Excellence (formerly the COTE Top 10) and a variety of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion initiatives. In an effort to synthesize the task force’s opinions on the current successes & challenges of both local and Chapter programs, a Mural Board was introduced as a virtual whiteboard enabling remote collaboration. The Mural Board provided a platform for the group to comment on what they saw as the purpose, concerns and opportunities embodied within the current award programs. Based on the comments relayed in the Mural Board and throughout the conversation, a set of seven common understandings were developed to provide a clear indication of the topics still requiring further work and compromise. Building on the areas of consensus, the third meeting on June 24th was devoted to developing a well-defined purpose statement and aligned goals. Arriving at a purpose statement which asserts a need for design recognition programs to celebrate the value of good design and award design excellence by promoting inclusivity, improving from an established baseline and incorporating best practices from other AIA components. Ultimately, 16 recommended goals were forwarded to the Board of Directors for their consideration following the Design Awards Task Force’s final meeting on July 10th.
The following are some of the principal goals that were approved by the Board of Directors during their most recent July 17th board meeting:
As the first step in uniting the five sections in a jury reviewed design awards program at the Chapter level, rename the Portland Architecture Awards to Oregon Architecture Awards.
Support & encourage local People’s Choice programs in all five sections through the development of the infrastructure to support the program.
Recognize, support and give voice to more diverse perspectives within the profession.
Promote and encourage projects that involved the community and contribute to equity.
Incorporate some provisions of AIA National’s Framework for Design Excellence as minimum requirements and the entire framework for special recognition.
Seek out a diverse set of jurors from different practice areas, generations, backgrounds and interests.
Recognize quality work produced in Oregon regardless of scale and budget.
Participation for the Oregon Architecture Awards should be encouraged and available/accessible to all AIA Oregon members.
The promotion of the event should encourage many and diverse submittals, broad participation in the celebration event and the results of the program should be widely publicized.
With the Board of Directors approving a series of recommendations by the Design Awards Task Force that intends to craft a new chapter for our awards programs prioritizing inclusion, community outreach and a broader view of design excellence; work is now underway to plan these forthcoming events.
Join us this Friday, 7/24 at 4pm for our weekly Virtual Happy Hour where the topic will be a discussion focusing on the recommendations by the AIAO Design Awards Task Force and upcoming planning. If you are interested in becoming involved in the planning committee for the 2020 Oregon Architecture Awards, , please contact cwilson@aiaoregon.org. Please contact the appropriate section leader if you are willing to participate on the planning committee for the section People’s Choice Awards in the following sections:
AIA Eugene – Colin Dean
AIA Southern Oregon – Sam Uccello
AIA Salem – Daniel Roth