Message from the AIA Oregon President

Amy Vohs, AIA
AIAO President

Hello everyone,

I cannot believe that August is almost over.  It is hard to tell time when our traditional summer pastimes are muted by continually working from home. I miss our summer block party as it signaled the end of summer.  At the AIA we are gearing up for fall events and even discussing our annual meeting.  We have a lot of openings coming up for the Board and Section leadership, so I hope you check out the website and previous newsletters for opportunities. 

As the summer winds down and we prepare for the new school year I also want to remind you that Design Awards Season is upon us. If you are interested, please see the website for calls for submission.  The AIA Oregon Design Awards program has changed from the AIA Portland Design Awards and the design awards task force has been working hard to get different ideas from across the state incorporated into this new format. We also have some amazing jurists lined up. With all virtual events we will miss the parties but will enjoy the wonderful architecture being represented from all sections of the state. Hopefully, next year we can get back to in-person celebrations.

I am also excited to give you all an update on our efforts to further develop our Social Justice Action Plan.  On June 6, AIA Oregon hosted a town hall with over 130 participants to get feedback on how we as an organization can focus our efforts to create real social change. We later presented a draft plan to members on June 30 with over 30 participants. With the amazing amount of feedback we received, our task force was able to narrow our focus down to six areas where we felt we can be most impactful. 

• Increase access to the profession

o   Promote mentorship programs in primary and secondary schools

o   Increase support for internship and programs

o   Reduce financial barriers to higher education

o   Support discussions for alternative paths to licensure

• Relationship Building

o   Help amplify voices of BIPOC organizations

o   Increase relationships with other organizations with shared goals

o   Increase relationships with Architecture and Design Schools

• Continuing Education Training

o   Develop and implement EDI principles in AIA Oregon programming

o   Increase access to EDI training for members

o   Increase member awareness of Spatial and Social Justice in planning and design

• Advocacy

o   Participate in local urban planning processes as EDI representatives

o   Create a Housing committee to advocate for access to equitable housing

o   Work with Local Affairs committees in Sections to advocate for equitable development

o   Coordinate with other components and National AIA on ethics of judicial design

• Expand EDI throughout the AIA Oregon organization

o   Incorporate EDI training in staff and Board leadership

o   Incorporate EDI lens to hiring and procurement practices

o   Align with AIA National planning efforts

• Celebration of Architecture and Architects

o   Promote minority architects and minority owned firms

o   Apply EDI lens to design recognition programs

As you can see, this is an ambitious plan, but I also feel this is where AIA Oregon needs to be to improve conditions not only for our colleagues of color but also for our communities’ health in equitable development. This is meant to be a long-term plan and will require commitment and consistency.  It also reinforces our Strategic Plan of Elevating the Member Experience, Enhancing Professional Development, Improve Our Communities and Adapt to the Changing Profession. 

WE NEED YOU to expand the conversation.  We are at a point where we need more voices to assist in developing these areas of focus into real tangible tasks. Currently our task force consists of myself, Curt Wilson, AIA Oregon Executive Director, Jennifer Wright, Portland Section Director, Ben Arico, Portland Section Director Elect, Kelly Chanopas and Octavio Gutierrez, Chair and Vice-Chair of CoEDI. We are also working with existing committees and talking with individuals interested in creating a Housing committee so there are lots of areas of interest to get involved. Please let us know if you are interested in any one of these areas by emailing info@aiaoregon.org. 

I am also excited to mention that the Board has approved EDI training for leadership and staff.  We are excited to kick off our training with Future Work Design. This will be a series of workshops the Board and staff will participate in over the next several months to better educate ourselves on how to reimagine how we all work together to create a more equitable world.  Please check them out www.futurework.design.

I am hopeful that the changes we are working on will make this organization better equipped to assist our members and communities in furthering the goals for social and racial equity in the design and development profession.

Thank you!

Amy Vohs
AIA Oregon President

Message from the AIA Bend Director-Elect

Sara Bergby, AIA
AIA Bend Director-Elect

Happy Thursday! I’m Sara Bergby, Director-Elect for the Bend Section of AIAO. I’ve been a member of the AIA for about five years, but only started actively participating in the membership last year. My reasoning for that is two-fold.

First, when I initially became a member, it was paid for by my boss at the time; since the membership was free to me, I just coasted along without investing any time or energy into it. However, when my membership came up for renewal after I left that company, I had to make a tough decision: resign as a member or start paying for my own membership. Though I hadn’t been actively involved with the organization I wasn’t ready to give up my membership, but I realized that I could only justify the outlay of the fee if I were to become more involved – just coasting along was no longer an option.

The second reason that I wasn’t active in the AIA until recently is the awkward structure of the organization at the time I became a member. Bend was then a part of the AIA Southwestern Oregon Chapter, so opportunities for involvement were extremely limited. Any personal involvement required driving to Eugene during the work week, a difficult task considering my full-time job and active family life. My change in jobs concurred with AIAO’s change to a state-wide structure and the subsequent implementation of Bend as its own Section. Suddenly, I had an opportunity to become involved right here at home, and my involvement could have a direct impact on how Bend developed as a Section.

My direct involvement as a member was spurred by the Bend Section Director “volunteering” me last spring for the position as Bend’s Emerging Professionals Committee Chair. In that position, I attended the two AIAO planning sessions in Portland that year and realized that the more involved I became, the more benefit I would receive from my membership, and the more impact I could have on the growth of our Section. With that in mind, I decided to run for the position as the Bend Section Director-Elect last winter. Since being elected to the position, I have worked closely with Bend’s current Director, Jim Satzinger, and our steering committee to help develop the AIA Bend Section.

I envision the Bend Section of AIAO becoming a vibrant, engaged group. Key to that is ensuring that our members become more involved as well. As the upcoming Director, I hope to build upon the foundation that Jim has laid to create an AIA community whose members feel valued and heard. I want to be sure that we are putting our resources toward the programs and events that matter most to our members. After all, if the benefits that we provide aren’t valued by our members, members won’t have much more incentive to become involved than I did five years ago. And we need our members to be involved in order to be a success.

The message written by AIAO’s Secretary, Misti Nelmes, a few weeks ago really resonated with me, and I believe it’s applicable here. In my experience, the AIA hasn’t consistently focused on providing the programs and events that resonate with local members. Whether it’s too difficult to obtain feedback from members, or too tough to tailor the programming to so many different visions, I don’t know. I don’t expect that there is a single approach that will work for each of AIAO’s Sections. I expect that each Section will have to work with their own members to evaluate members’ needs and determine the path forward that provides the most benefit to the largest range of members. But I do believe that listening to our members – and to those who aren’t yet members but would consider membership if certain programming or events were more prevalent – is a key to growing a stronger and more collaborative membership. And I believe that the stronger our membership base is, the more benefits we will be able to provide to each of our members.

Whether or not you’re currently a member, I ask that you reach out and let me know which programs, events, and services that matter most to you. You can email me directly at sara@enclavearch.com with your thoughts, or join the AIAO Virtual Happy Hour at 4pm this Friday 8/21/2020 to give your feedback on ways that we can increase member engagement.

Message from the Chair and Vice-Chair of the AIAO Committee on on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (CoEDI)

Kelly Chanopas, AIA is an Associate at ZGF and has chaired AIA Oregon CoEDI since 2019, after serving as vice-chair since the committee’s founding.  Octavio Gutierrez, AIA is an Associate at Mahlum and has vice-chaired the committee since 2019.

Greetings, colleagues!

The AIA Oregon Committee on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (CoEDI) was initially formed in 2018 in an effort to expand the (then) AIA Portland Chapter’s commitment to impacting equity, diversity and inclusion across our member community by offering programs that address leadership development, workplace culture, career development, and broader community engagement.  Our mission today remains to better reflect the global and demographic richness of our population through advocacy for under-represented groups in our profession.  Throughout our short history, our mission has been guided by four keystones:  supporting firms in attracting and retaining diverse talent, mentoring across all phases of the professional pipeline, facilitating connections to our communities, and promoting the value of design and its contributions to and from society.

While we currently serve as chair and vice-chair of CoEDI, our committee’s efforts are supported by a dedicated – and truly fabulous – group of members and allied professionals who selflessly volunteer their time to develop our recurring programs (Engage, Workplace Now), put on our flagship annual event (Future Vision), and identify additional tools, topics and speakers to offer learning opportunities for the greater AIA Oregon membership.  We are always happy to talk more about our events, but here is a brief summary:

Engage is a series focusing on opportunities to connect architects and designers with each other and our communities, celebrating the contributions of those who bring diverse experiences, views, and needs into the design process.  Past events have included a volunteer opportunity open house and bringing in speakers from local government and non-profit organizations.

Workplace [Now] is an interactive series exploring the elements of firm culture. The format and theme of each events vary, but past events have focused on the multi-generational office and mentorship.

Future Vision is a day-long symposium organized around themes of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.  Future Vision 2019 focused on the tools necessary to promote equity within the profession, and Future Vision 2020 will explore issues of identity and intersectionality.  Our 2020 event will be virtual with sessions held over multiple days.

We both got involved with CoEDI as a call to action and a determination to take the necessary steps to effect meaningful change. For us, CoEDI embodies a framework necessary for just and equitable processes to be developed, tested, and widely shared through our professional networks in order to create diverse and inclusive work environments where BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) professionals are treated equally as their true, authentic selves. 

Although the current pandemic has upended many of our lives, we remain committed now more than ever to bring social and racial justice to our profession.  We are encouraged by the overwhelming response that you – our members – have shown by attending our June 2020 social justice listening sessions and monthly committee meetings, and we appreciate your patience as we re-tool our processes for a broader, albeit remote, level of committee engagement.   We are forging ahead with planning for Future Vision 2020, and we are preparing to re-launch our discussion groups around the AIA Guides for Equitable Practice and other member-suggested reading selections. 

CoEDI meets on the fourth Thursday of each month, from Noon to 1pm, and we look forward to welcoming you at a future meeting or event.  Until further notice, we are meeting remotely via video conference.  We are joining the 8/14 AIA Oregon Virtual Happy Hour at 4:00 to discuss allyship within our profession.  Join us!  If you have any questions or would like to receive meeting notices and committee announcements, please e-mail us at info@aiaoregon.org.