For Immediate Release: National Organization of Minority Architects 2012 Conference Returns to Detroit for 40th Annual Conference October 18 – 20, 2012

CONTACTS:

Karen A. Davis                                                          

Detroit Chapter, National Organization of Minority Architects                                             

PHONE: (248) 629-0441                                            

info@nomadetroit.org

http://www.nomadetroit.org/ 

National Organization of Minority Architects

PHONE:  (202) 686-2780

programs@noma.net

http://noma.net

For Immediate Release

National Organization of Minority Architects 2012 Conference Returns to Detroit for 40^TH Annual Conference October 18 – 20, 2012

WHAT: The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) returns to the city where it was founded – Detroit, Michigan – for its 40th annual conference October 18 – 20. With the theme “40 Years in the Making: A Legacy Driven by Design,” the conference will feature professional development and continuing education seminars, exhibitors, tours of Detroit's architecture, a community service project, and a student design competition focused on the city's Corktown neighborhood.

WHO: More than 500 NOMA members, affiliates and students are expected, including architects, interior designers, planners, and construction and real estate professionals. NOMA membership boasts 22 chapters nationwide and numerous outstanding professionals and firms.

WHERE: The Westin Book Cadillac Hotel, 1114 Washington Boulevard, Detroit, Michigan 48226

WHEN: 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily, Thursday, October 18 through Saturday, October 20, 2012

COMMUNITY SERVICE LEGACY PROJECT: NOMA has designed and will build modular display units that WARM Training Center will use to share their educational programs with Detroiters. WARM Training Center is an organization that promotes the development of resource efficient, affordable, healthy homes and communities through education, training and technical assistance. Volunteers and partners are welcome to participate Wednesday, October 17, 2012. See more on http://pinterest.com/noma2012/community-service-legacy-project/

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: Monica Ponce de Leon, dean of the Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning at the University of Michigan will present "Minority Opinion" as the Luncheon keynote speaker on Friday, October 19th.

At the Saturday, October 20^th Awards Banquet, keynote speaker Karen Hudson, will present her grandfather's work, "The Life & Works of Paul R. Williams." Born in 1894, Mr. Williams was a Los Angeles-based African American architect who designed homes for numerous celebrities, including Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball, and Lon Chaney.

SPECIAL EVENTS: Thursday evening, October 18^th at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, MI, the Detroit Chapter of NOMA hosts a panel discussion on Detroit Urban Planning. Scheduled panelist are: Sue Mosey, president of Midtown Detroit, Inc.; Toni Griffin, consultant to the Detroit Works Project; Faye Nelson, President & CEO of the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy; and George W. Jackson, Jr., President & CEO of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp.

The perennial Bros Arts Ball, which will take place in the beautiful rotunda of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit on Friday, October 19^th, promises an evening of fun, networking and museum exploration. NOMA founders will open the event with a discussion of the organization’s origins and importance to architects and others who are concerned with the built environment.

The closing Banquet and Awards ceremony on Saturday at the host hotel will introduce newly elected leadership and present Professional Design Awards, Chapter and Member of the Year Awards, and the Founder’s Award.

SEMINARS: The Conference features over 60 workshops and seminars with continuing education system learning units (CES) available from the American Institute of Architects.  Presentation topics include: diversity; the city of Detroit; students and emerging professionals; design; sustainability; real estate development; technology; and professional practice. A complete schedule is available at http://noma.net

STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION: “Urban [space] US12... Idea Center” seeks ideas for the invigoration and infusion of community-led design and economic development in Southwest Detroit. Design teams from NOMA Student chapters across the U.S. studied historical site conditions and the current social, cultural, economic, and physical space conditions found in this unique community, as well as the entrepreneurial spirit of the community's citizens. Teams will present their designs and models Saturday, October 20^th, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm at the host hotel with successful planning and design solutions addressing how the city and neighborhood can optimally leverage Michigan Avenue’s Corktown District. The Competition brief can be downloaded at http://noma.net/EventsPrograms/events_2012conference.aspx.

DETROIT TOURS: Available as seminar options or as separate walking and bus adventures, attendees can explore metro Detroit’s stunning architecture: Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills; homes designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright; downtown Detroit theaters; Lafayette Park, and more.

SPONSORS AND EXHIBITORS: Lawrence Technological University, Gensler, Taubman

College of Architecture + Urban Planning at the University of Michigan, The American Institute  of Architects, Bedrock Real Estate Services, Wayne County Community College District, and many other local and national companies and organizations are sponsors of this year’s Conference.

WEBSITE, REGISTRATION AND TICKETS: http://www.noma.net/EventsPrograms/events_2012conference.aspx

SOCIAL MEDIA: Connect with the NOMA Conference conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest at /NOMA2012 and follow conversation using the hashtag #NOMA2012.

ABOUT NOMA NATIONAL - The National Organization of Minority Architects’ (NOMA) mission is to champion diversity within the design professions by promoting the excellence, community engagement, and professional development of its members.

ABOUT NOMA DETROIT - The National Organization of Minority Architects was founded in 1971 as a means to foster communications among minority architects and to fight discriminatory practices used by public sector and private clients. Founded in 2006, the Detroit chapter hosts activities that highlight the architecture profession, the needs of the community, and provides solutions that will insure a healthy living and working environment.

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Karen A. Davis | Building Industry Resources

TechTown 440 Burroughs No. 66 | Detroit, MI 48202 | 248.210.3750 www.buildingsource.net 

NOMA2012 Conference Seminars on Diversity

Below are seminars on diversity in architecture, design and construction being presented at the NOMA2012 Conference, October 18-20, 2012 in Detroit:

Keynote Speaker: Monica Ponce de Leon, Dean of the Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning at the University of Michigan – “Minority Opinion”

Karen Hudson: "The Life & Works of Paul R. Williams"

AIA + NOMA: Collaborating for the Future

Riding the Vortex XI: African American Women Architects in Practice

Asian American Architects: Invisible Minorities

NOMA Past Presidents Panel

NOMA Founders' ‐ History Flashback Panel

The Jack & Steve Show: Cultural Identity through Architecture and Design

Black vs. Architecture

Introducing Youth to Architecture

NOMA Louisiana Project Pipeline Camp

Hiring Small Businesses for Large Scale Projects

Cross Cultural Training in Construction Projects

Minority Certification and Resources

The Story of Black Architects in New York

Master Builders: A Documentary featuring African American Architects in the Nation's Capital

Carnegie Colored Libraries: Public & Academic ‐ Their Cultural Legacies

2012 NOMA Conference Schedule

Click here to download the complete schedule from noma.net

NOMA at USGBC Green Apple Day

Rob Saxon represented NOMA-Detroit and NOMA National at the U.S. Green Building Council's Green Apple Day of Service, a day dedicated to helping make schools healthier, more sustainable place to learn. NOMA's 2012 Legacy Design Charrette & Student Project Pipeline project - mobile display units for W.A.R.M. Training Center - was displayed at East English Village College Preparatory Academy in Detroit.

Get ready, NOMA, to participate in the Community Service Legacy Project. See the mobile display units below (at Green Apple Day and a part of the Detroit Design Festival), and more on the WARM Training Center and the Legacy Project on our previous blog post here.

NOMA with USGBC at the Green Apple Day of Service

NOMA at the Detroit Design Festival - September 2012

NOMA 2012 Legacy Design Charrette & Student Project Pipeline

NOMA's national conference is coming to Detroit October 18-20, 2012. Traditionally, the day before the conference, NOMA members complete a construction project to be left as a legacy in the host city.This year, the legacy project will be new mobile demonstration units for W.A.R.M. Training Center, a non-profit organization that promotes the development of healthy homes and communities.

High school and college design students were invited to join in a charrette with NOMA Detroit members, design professionals, and W.A.R.M. Training employees and volunteers to design flexible, mobile units that will display building products and materials, tools, photos, brochures and other educational materials for W.A.R.M. 

Currently, the items are displayed at W.A.R.M., one of eight energy demonstration centers in the state of Michigan. During the charrette, teams designed 10' x 10' and 3' x 6'  flexible mobile units that can be transported for education in communities or at conferences and trade shows.

Prototypes of the designs will be constructed for displayed at the Detroit Design Festival September 22 and 23, 2012 at the Michigan State University Detroit Center and during the U.S. Green Building Council's Green Apple Day of Service. The final units will be built by NOMA members on Wednesday, October 17, 2012.

Below are photos of the charrette participants,  existing display space, and designs for the new mobile units:

2012 Student Project Pipeline| One-Day Design Charrette | Students working with Architects

In preparation for the NOMA 2012 Conference in October, we are organizing a design charrette to be held on Saturday, July 14 (NOMA-Detroit's first Student Pipeline Project event). The goal is to redesign WARM Training's Energy Demonstration Center. The winning design will be fabricated and built the week of the Conference by NONA volunteers in October. Please refer to the brochure below for more information. All are welcome to attend!

Definition of "Charrette":
The word charrette may refer to any collaborative session in which a group of designers drafts a solution to a design problem. Charrettes serve as a way of quickly generating a design solution while integrating the aptitudes and interests of a diverse group of people. Compare this term with workshop.

Thought to originate from the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris in the 19th century, the word charrette is from the French for cart or chariot.

Sponsorships are still available - contact Rob Saxon, AIA, LEED AP, NOMA - rsaxon@hamilton-anderson.com

Spread the word!

NOMA 2012 Planning Committee

NOMA Legacy Project 2011 - from last year's Conference


(via Saundra Little)

Deadline Extended: NOMA 2012 Conference Call for Presentations

Detroit – June 2012 – The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) will hold its 40th annual conference in Detroit, Michigan, October 18 – 20 at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel. With the theme “40 Years in the Making: A Legacy Driven by Design,” the conference will feature professional development and continuing education seminars, exhibitors, tours of Detroit's architecture, a community service project, and a student design competition focused on the city's Corktown neighborhood.

NOMA invites forward thinking speakers to submit proposals for unique seminars and workshops that will prepare conference attendees for innovative, creative and successful practice. Conference speakers and workshop presenters should consider topics in the following categories that support and illuminate the conference theme and industry trends: 1) Youth; 2) Community/Advocacy; 3) Interdisciplinary Collaboration; 3) Sustainability/Globalism; 4) Technology in Practice; 5) Marketing and Growing the Firm.

The NOMA 2012 Conference will continue the tradition of fostering collaboration among 

partnering organizations, businesses and educational institutions concerned with the quality of the built environment in general and with particular concern for under-served communities.

The deadline for submissions of presentation and seminar proposals has been extended to Friday, June 29, 2012, and the proposal form can be downloaded at http://noma.net/EventsPrograms/events_2012conference.aspx

  

More information about the NOMA 2012 Conference can be found at www.nomadetroit.org, including registration and hotel information, an Exhibitor and Sponsor Prospectus, and details of the Student Design Competition.