Carnegie Mellon University
May 19, 2015

UDream Program Receives AIA National Diversity Award

By Pam Wigley / 412-268-1047 / pwigley@andrew.cmu.edu

UDream Diversity AwardThis past March, UDream was recognized by the AIA at its Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference. Pictured (l-r) are: Elizabeth Chu Richter, AIA president; Valecia Wilson, UDream Class of 2011, Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission; Erica Cochran, CMU UDream Program Director; Robert Ivy, AIA CEO; and Torrey Stanley Carleton, Hon. AIA.

The Carnegie Mellon University UDream program in the School of Architecture was honored as a Diversity Recognition Program by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Saturday, May 16, at the AIA National Convention in Atlanta.

William J. Bates, a member of the AIA and the National Organization of Minority Architects, and an adjunct faculty member in the School of Architecture, received the award on behalf of CMU. Bates, who also serves as AIA National Board vice president, is vice president of Real Estate for Eat ‘n Park Restaurants in Pittsburgh.

UDream (Urban Design Regional Employment Action for Minorities) was first recognized in March by the AIA at its 2015 Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., for its innovative methods to diversify Pittsburgh’s urban design workforce. Professor Erica Cochran, UDream program director, accepted the national award during a ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Washington Capitol Hill accompanied by six past UDream participants.

The Carnegie Mellon University UDream program in the School of Architecture was honored as a Diversity Recognition Program by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Saturday, May 16, at the AIA National Convention in Atlanta.

William J. Bates, a member of the AIA and the National Organization of Minority Architects, and an adjunct faculty member in the School of Architecture, received the award on behalf of CMU. Bates, who also serves as AIA National Board vice president, is vice president of Real Estate for Eat ‘n Park Restaurants in Pittsburgh.

UDream (Urban Design Regional Employment Action for Minorities) was first recognized in March by the AIA at its 2015 Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., for its innovative methods to diversify Pittsburgh’s urban design workforce. Professor Erica Cochran, UDream program director, accepted the national award during a ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Washington Capitol Hill accompanied by six past UDream participants.

UDream is an 18-week program that provides recent minority college graduates of architecture, urban design, urban planning and landscape architecture with an opportunity to further their knowledge of urban design while working in Pittsburgh. The program begins with a five-week academic focus at CMU and features a high school mentoring component called Architecture Building Communities, a summer camp in which high school students work on an urban design project in the city. The concluding phase of the program is a 12-week paid internship with a local architecture firm, nonprofit community organization or public agency. The intern placement process is rigorous and includes a series of interviews with representatives from the host firms.

“The interview process is crucial, because it pairs UDream participants with firms that will help them develop and, ultimately, succeed,” Cochran said.

The UDream program originated in a discussion between representatives from CMU’s School of Architecture and Remaking Cities Institute, and The Heinz Endowments, the latter of which funds the program. Each wanted to recruit recent minority college graduates to come to Pittsburgh with the goal of finding permanent employment at the end of the 18-week program. Funding also is provided by the School of Architecture and various regional architecture/urban design firms.

UDream is an 18-week program that provides recent minority college graduates with an opportunity to further their knowledge of urban design while working in Pittsburgh.

During the first six years of the program (2009-2014), UDream achieved a 43 percent local retention rate with 25 of the 58 participants obtaining professional jobs in Pittsburgh in architecture, urban design, community development or construction. Ten students have been accepted for the UDream Year Seven program; they will arrive June 1 on the CMU campus to begin the program.

Safiya Hodari participated in the program in 2009. She received her bachelor’s degree at Washington University in St. Louis and her master’s degree in architecture from the University of Illinois at Chicago. After participating in the UDream program, Hodari chose to work toward her master’s degree in architecture-engineering-construction management at CMU, which she completed in December 2013.

“UDream helped me make a lot of great connections,” Hodari said. “After the academic portion of UDream, I worked for my studio professors at their firm. I made a great deal of progress toward my professional license.”

Hodari said UDream also helped her become more involved in professional organizations and she has made lifelong friends.

“It’s an excellent place to learn and grow, both professionally and personally,” Hodari said. “I plan to stay in Pittsburgh for many more years to come.”