Friday, December 4

The Gensler African-American Internship and Scholarship

The Gensler African-American Internship and Scholarship
celebrates our firm's commitment to diversity through mentorship
and empowerment of the best emerging design talent. Top
African-American students of NAAB-accredited architecture
programs will be selected for a summer internship and academic
scholarship.
Submission Deadline: January 15, 2010.
For application materials, please visit
www.gensler.com/scholarships
or email scholarship@gensler.com .

Tuesday, November 24

MMBEC/ARRA Business to Business Outreach

Please plan to join the Michigan Minority Business Enterprise Center (MMBEC) and the Michigan Minority Supplier Diversity Council (MMSDC) as we welcome Wayne County Officials, City of Detroit Officials, Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), DTE Energy, Detroit Public Schools, among others who will discuss contract opportunities under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Learn how you can gain access to ARRA Opportunities in Michigan.


Thursday 3-Dec-09 8:30 AM to Thursday 3-Dec-09 11:00 AM

Tuesday, November 17

The Future Design of Detroit

You’re going to hear the words asset and opportunity a lot in this story. And frankly, that’s a pretty welcome surprise. It’s not often you hear those words associated with Detroit these days.

But don’t tell that to Charles Cross, Chandra Moore, and Virginia Stanard. They all work at the Detroit Collaborative Design Center. The firm is associated with the University of Detroit Mercy. And most of their work focuses on Detroit’s abandoned spaces.

Full Story with audio here

Wednesday, October 28

Free After-School Urban Design Program Begins

A new, free after-school urban design program has begun for high school students. Classes began October 22, 2009. The program will focus on Depot Town, Ypsilanti and will use the free modeling program Sketchup (http://sketchup.google.com/) to bring students' ideas for improving the neighborhood to life.

Classes will be held on Thursdays from 3-5pm at Eastern Michigan's Halle Library, Room 111. The class is open to high school students, completely free, and will run for 8 consecutive weeks (excluding Thanksgiving).

Interested students should contact Rob Saxon at any of the following numbers: (313) 887 6288, (313) 964-0270 or (734) 347-1298. See the flyers below for more information.

Free After-school Urban Design Program



Thursday, October 22

Walter Hood, Hood Design, Oakland, California "Urban Landscapes + Provocations"

Friday November 13, 2009
Walter Hood, Hood Design, Oakland, California "Urban Landscapes + Provocations"
NOMA Reception @ 5:00 @ Genevieve Fisk Lerenger Architecture Center

Walter Hood is Professor and former Chair of Landscape Architecture at the University of California, Berkeley, and principal of Hood Design in Oakland, CA. Hood has worked in a variety of settings including architecture, landscape architecture, art, community and urban design, planning and research. He was a fellow at the American Academy in Rome in Landscape Architecture, 1997. He has exhibited and lectured on his professional projects and theoretical works nationally and abroad. His work was recently featured in the "Open, New Designs For Public Spaces", Van Allen Institute, NY, and his firm designed the gardens and landscape for the New De Young Museum, San Francisco with Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron. He is currently designing the landscape for the Autry National Museum in Los Angeles, CA,; designing an archeological garden within the context of the South Lawn Project at the University of Virginia, and developing a set of monuments and markers for a six mile waterfront trail in Oakland, CA.

http://www.wjhooddesign.com/home.html

Also in January:

Gensler + Master of Community Development Program Lecture

Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Design Center Panel and Lecture, Cleveland + Detroit "Design Centers as Operative Change"
Participants:
Detroit Collaborative Design Center, Dan Pitera, Director Cleveland Urban Design Center, Terri Swartz, Urban Planner Detroit Community Design Center, Craig Wilkins, Director

http://architecture.udmercy.edu/index.php/news-and-events/soa-lecture-series

Monday, October 19

Carole Harris at Fredericks Sculpture Museum

Please Carole Harris at the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009 at 4:00 p.m., where she will discuss her stunning quilts, what inspires her designs, and who influenced her art making.

Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum
Saginaw Valley State University
7400 Bay Road University Center, MI 48710
(989) 964-7125
Website: http://www.svsu.edu/mfsm
Blog: http://www.marshallfredericks.com/
Email: mfsm(at)svsu.edu

See photos of Carole's quilts below.

Carole Harris Quilt (2)


Carole Harris Quilt (1)


Wednesday, July 15

Artist draws cityscapes from memory

Stephen Wiltshire, an artist from Great Britain, draws realistic cityscapes from memory. He has been featured as ABC News' Person of the Week. See the video.

Tuesday, May 26

The Business Case for Going Green

WWJ Newsradio 950 and the Engineering Society of Detroit present a special business breakfast "The Business Case For Going Green," as part of the Engineering Society of Detroit's "Greening The Heartland," conference happening from May 31 - June 2, 2009 in Detroit.

Going green can make real business sense and improve business processes. Presenters will discuss real world examples of how the worlds of business, government, and education are implementing green strategies that are saving them money and reducing their impact on the Earth.

Tickets are $25
Monday, June 1, 2009
Detroit, MI
Cobo Center, Riverview Ballroom
Registration - 7:15 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
Program - 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.

Register here.

Monday, April 27

NOMA Detroit Celebrates Roger & Fran Margerum


The National Organization of Minority Architects, Detroit Chapter honored architect Roger Margerum with the Lifetime Achievement Award. He is the first to receive the award from NOMA-Detroit. Mr. Margerum’s architectural designs and textiles designed and weaved by his late wife, Fran, were on display throughout the evening.


At right, NOMA-D president, Kenneth Crutcher (right), and past president, Darron Green (center), present Mr. Margerum with the Lifetime Achivement Award.
Roger Margerum and his 45 degree residence.

Roger Margerum with the NOMA-Detroit board of directors. In the background is a textile weaved by Mrs. Fran Margerum.


Enjoying the NOMA event.
Roger Margerum takes it all in.

Wednesday, April 15

NOMA Detroit Board Member, Craig Wilkins, Wins Award

Craig L. Wilkins, PhD, AIA, NOMA, the Director of the Detroit Community Design Center and an instructor at the University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, has been given the Collaborative Practice Award by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture. The award recognizes "the programs that demonstrate how faculty, students, and community/civic clients work to realize common objectives."

"Each year the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture honors architectural educators for exemplary work in areas such as building design, community collaborations, scholarship, and service. The award-winning professors inspire and challenge students, contribute to the profession's knowledge base, and extend their work beyond the borders of academia into practice and the public sector." (from the ACSA website)

Dr. Wilkins also participated in the conference, "Unspoken Borders: The Ecologies of Inequality," hosted by the Black Student Alliance at The University of Pennsylvania School of Design. The conference sought to bring social equity back to architectural discourse. Said Dr. Wilkins, "Architects have been skittish about addressing large-scale social issues ever since the profession’s notorious Pruitt-Igoe-style failures in the 1960’s." Other participants included Teddy Cruz, Maurice Cox and Kian Goh.

See more information from the conference at the Architect's Newspaper Blog.

Friday, April 10

NOMA-D Celebrates Lifetime Achievement of Architect Roger Margerum, FAIA

The National Organization of Minority Architects will celebrate the Lifetime Achievement of Detroit architect, Roger Margerum, and pay tribute to his late wife, Fran L. Margerum. Mr. Margerum’s designs and Mrs. Margerum’s textile work will be on display throughout the evening of celebration.

An African-American architect who graduated from the University of Illinois in 1955 with a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, Mr. Margerum began his career working with Skidmore Owings and Merrill (SOM) in Chicago and Smith, Hinchman and Grylls (SmithGroup) in Detroit. His major projects included the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO and Hart Plaza in Detroit.

Mr. Margerum later opened his own firm with locations in Detroit and Chicago. His successful career has spanned half a century, and he has received numerous honors for his work. His 45-degree polygonal residence was recently featured in the Detroit Free Press and the Fall 2008 issue of Detroit Home magazine.

Mrs. Margerum was an educator who taught students throughout the United States. She was founder of Professional Adult Reading Services, a successful private business that provided individual reading instruction to adults. Mrs. Margerum was also an accomplished weaver with patrons in Detroit and Chicago.

The National Organization of Minority Architects, Detroit Chapter, along with co-sponsor, Hamilton Anderson Associates Architects, will host the award celebration and tribute Thursday, April 16, 2009 from 6:30 PM until 8:30 PM at University of Michigan Orchestra Place, 3663 Woodward Ave., Suite 150, Detroit, MI 48201.

See event invitation at right.

Tuesday, March 31

Save the Dates: Conferences in Detroit

Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference & Expo - May 17 - 20, 2009 @ Detroit Marriott at Renaissance Center

Greening the Heartland (Green Building & Sustainability) - May 31 - June 2, 2009 @ Detroit Marriott at Renaissance Center

Saturday, March 28

Designs Submitted for the National African American Museum

Six Architectural firms are finalists to design the National Museum of African American History and Culture, as part of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC. See design photos at the Smithsonian site.

Submitted by Emmett B. Hagood, Jr

Share your thoughts on the designs using the comment link.

Friday, March 20

Centric Design Studio in the News

NOMA Detroit's president-elect, Saundra Little, discusses starting a new architecture firm during the recession. Is Now a Good Time to Start Your Own Studio? Recession & Recovery Architectural Record

Wednesday, March 18

Walter Hood Reception & Lecture

The University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture would like to invite you to "Urban Landscapes and Provocations" by Walter Hood, April 1, 2009. A reception will be held beforehand beginning at 5pm.

Please come out and support sponsors NOMA Detroit and Master of Community Development Program.

Wednesday, February 11

A2SO4 in Indianapolis Seeking Summer Interns

A2SO4’s summer internship program provides exceptional architecture and interior design students with opportunities to gain professional experience at our headquarters in Indianapolis.

A2SO4 will be offering two internship positions — one for 3rd year or above architecture students and one for 3rd year interior design students.

See the A2SO4 Opportunities page for contact information.

Friday, January 30

Urban Memories: The Quilt & Fabric Art of Carole Harris


The colorful and richly innovative quilts and textiles of Detroit artist and interior designer Carole Harris, whose work has been nationally recognized and graces many public and private collections, will be exhibited at the Ellen Kayrod Gallery at the Hannan House.


An evening reception is scheduled for Friday January 30th, from 5:00-8:00 pm, with a performance by a special jazz duo. The event is free and open to the public. For more information about the artist, Carole Harris, visit: http://charris-design.com/art/index.html .

The Ellen Kayrod Gallery is located on the first floor of the Hannan House at 4750 Woodward in Detroit, MI, three blocks south of the Detroit Institute of Arts. Free parking is provided in rear of building.

For more information about the gallery visit http://www.hannan.org/

Friday, January 16

LEED Exam Studying Advice

Thanks to Saundra Little, who passed the exam and found success with this method.

Hello NOMA-D. Here's a suggested study methodology which I used for v2.1. The pressure is on because LEED 2009 in due out later this year. Legend has it that exams always get harder or a higher level of difficulty is added to the newer exams. So my advice would be to take it now.

First some prerequisites:

1. Get the reference guide. The LEED for New Construction v2.2 Reference Guide at http://www.usgbc.org/Store/PublicationsList.aspx?CMSPageID=1518
http://www.intheleed.com/what-to-study/

2. Get a copy of a suitable mock exam with answers. (I used the *** v2.1 mock exam with answers)

3. Get access to the USGBC website. [Membership required]

4. Schedule the exam. It doesn't cost anything to move it, if you do so more than two business days before your exam. (Check that.) Scheduling the exam forces you to move on studying. Also, Prometric didn't charge me until after I took the exam, so there doesn't seem to be any "upfront" cost to doing this. (Check this as well.)

Now, how to study:

A. Download the LEED-NC checklist-v2.2.xls from USGBC (excel format).

B. Use this as a basis to make your own study/cheat sheet.

C. In excel add, three more columns with the headings: Requirements, Submittals, References

D. Start filling these out. The act of looking them up and filling them out kinda forces you to go through the reference book step-by-step. Filling out your cheat sheet also gives you a "goal" and sense of accomplishment. If you just try to read the book alone, it get's pretty dry and seems a bit overwhelming. (BONUS: when you're done with your sheet, it also gives you a quick reference to some of the major contents of the exam.)

E. But, do read the entire reference guide

F. Review definitions at the end ofthe Reference guide.

G. Go to USGBC website and review the following:

- process to certify a building, including steps to take. Generally how fees are calculated, review periods, and under what LEED (NC, CI, etc.)?

- CIR process: how to do it.

H. Test yourself.

I. Do the mock exam and check your answers. Review weak areas. Move the exam date if you're freaking out.

J.Take the exam.

Web Links:
http://www.usgbc.org/
http://www.gbci.org/
http://www.intheleed.com/

The ARE Forum (Has discussion on the LEED Exam):
http://www.areforum.org/
http://www.areforum.org/forums/search.php?s=&q=leed
http://www.areforum.org/forums/forum12/12831.html

LEED Study Guide: http://ppi2pass.com/ppi/PPIShop_ct_LEED

http://www.buildinggreen.com/live/index.cfm/2008/3/13/LEED-AP-Practice-Exam-Test-USGBC

Good Luck,

Saundra Little, AIA, LEED AP NOMA