SmithGroup

As part of our promise to , SmithGroup is striving to cultivate a more diverse pipeline of future design talent, to better reflect the diversity of the communities we serve in our design work.

One way we do that is by introducing design and construction careers to K-12 students of underrepresented backgrounds in our industry, demonstrating the impact that the built environment can have on communities and showing students the profound influence they could have as architects and engineers in their communities. We believe this early outreach is essential to inspiring the next generation of designers of color.

Over the last year, SmithGroup colleagues have volunteered their time, mentorship and expertise engaging Black youth at various high school career fairs and community festivals with organizations like Black Tech Link. Additionally, SmithGroup professionals have hosted hands-on studio tours of our locations across the country in conjunction with organizations like Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Cranbrook Horizons Upward Bound.



Pictured: Boys & Girls Club studio visit at SmithGroup Madison, WI; STEM High School Career Fair in San Diego, CA; and Cranbrook Horizons Upward Bound studio visit at SmithGroup Detroit, MI

SmithGroup formalized long-term partnerships with three architecture schools as part of our commitment to diversifying design professions through cultivation of a more diverse design talent pipeline.

SmithGroup’s partnerships with Florida A&M University, Hampton University- Official and Howard University address through sponsorship of each school’s architecture program, through paid internships, and through academic mentorship.

Since the inception of the partnerships in 2021, 60 SmithGroup architects and engineers have provided supporting instruction, academic coaching, and design critique for more than 475 students.

Read more about the creation of SmithGroup HBCU Partnerships: https://www.smithgroup.com/news/2021/smithgroup-creates-partnerships-with-three-hbcus



Pictured: Howard University Third Year Midterm Portfolio Review at SmithGroup Washington, DC
📷 Mark Finkenstaedt Photography

It is an honor to be part of this transformative redevelopment project! Buffalo Central Terminal will once again shine like a jewel, bringing renewed hope and investment to the community.

Look at Glass City Metropark sparkle! So thrilled to see this amazing project in the spotlight! Congratulations to Metroparks Toledo and the many teammates who made this project possible!

Congratulations to this year’s Ohio Parks and Recreation Association’s Governor’s Award Winner, Metroparks Toledo, for Glass City Metropark! Great people doing even greater work!

The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) was founded as a dedicated organization for the advancement and development of minority architects. Today, NOMA acts as an essential influence in diversifying the design industry, empowering equity and justice in design practice, and fostering a growing community of designers of color.

SmithGroup is committed to creating a more diverse design profession by cultivating a pipeline of future design talent that reflects the communities we serve. We contribute time, resources and expertise to several NOMA programs whose purpose is also nurturing the next generation of design talent.

SmithGroup is an active sponsor of the NOMA HBCU Professional Development Program, as well as the Carnegie Mellon University UDream program affiliated with the NOMA Pittsburgh chapter, which has a similar purpose. SmithGroup also had the pleasure of participating in the summer 2023 NOMA Foundation Fellowship cohort (now called NOMA Future Faces).

Each summer, SmithGroup colleagues enjoy volunteering with the NOMA Project Pipeline summer camps affiliated with chapters across the United States, that introduces 6th-12th grade students to careers in architecture while empowering them to affect change in their communities through design.



Pictured: 2023 Project Pipeline summer camps in Pittsburgh and Southern California

As we honor the life and legacy Dr. King today, we believe it is timely to publicly reaffirm that we remain committed to our values of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion at SmithGroup. In a time when corporate DEI programs are faltering, the Supreme Court has struck down affirmative action, and schools are shying away from teaching Black history, we continue to seek as many ways as possible to achieve inclusion and equity in our organization and in our design practices.

We are committed to embodying Design Justice in our work, following a framework that empowers people through a healthy and sustainable built environment while undoing systems of harm. We remain committed to our promise to design a better future for our clients, our communities and ourselves, and believe that promise includes cultivating a design culture that recognizes that a diversity of viewpoints and identities make for better design solutions.

We are pleased to highlight one such example of Design Justice in action today: SmithGroup is collaborating with the City of Racine, Wisconsin Government to design a new community campus to replace the existing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center and will newly co-locate the Racine Community Health Center and Racine Public Health Department into one facility dedicated to holistic community wellbeing. The enlarged campus honors Dr. King's vision of ‘Beloved Community’ addressing physical, mental, emotional and social needs. The future facility is designed for net zero and LEED platinum certifications.

This year we've shared in many exciting opportunities and adventures. Looking forward to starting a new journey with all of you -- our colleagues, clients, partners and friends -- in 2024.

Wishing everyone a peaceful and happy holiday season!

More holiday cheer found here: https://smithgroup-holidaygreeting-23.webflow.io/

A team of our colleagues in recently came together to ride 25-miles and raise $7000 for cancer research. The second annual BellRinger bike ride raised funds for researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. The SmithGroup team included Josh V***a, Chris Wood, Jacob Pohlman, Tom Faucette, Paul Caro, Doug Dahlkemper and Kevin Johnson. Well done!

Kicking off the week with some wonderful news: Our amazingly talented colleague, Katy Liang, has been named a "40 Under 40" honoree by Building Design+Construction magazine for 2023! This prestigious, annual recognition program celebrates architects, engineers, contractors and real estate developers for their outstanding career achievements, passion for the profession, involvement with industry organizations and service to their communities.

Please join us in congratulating Katy on this impressive and well-deserved honor!

https://www.bdcnetwork.com/40under40-2023 #:~:text=Katy%20Liang%2C%20AIA%2C%20LEED%20GA

SmithGroup’s Keenan Gibbons and University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Salvador Lindquist were featured on CNN for their Landscape Architecture Foundation research using drone-based thermal analysis to evaluate and help reduce urban heat impacts. Congratulations to both on their impressive, committed work – and the resulting data and toolkit that will help us design safer, more equitable cities in response to climate change.

Video: Drones help uncover why our cities are so hot | CNN Business Landscape architects Keenan Gibbons and Salvador Lindquist are using infrared drones to uncover the ways we’ve made our cities hot by design, and how we might be able to tackle this.

It was an honor to join Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation on August 14 to celebrate the official opening of its reimagined West Park and dedicate the “Jim Engledow Commons” in remembrance of the late Mr. Engledow and his long-time service on the Carmel/Clay Board of Parks and Recreation.

West Park -- which features a new playground, splash pad with waterfalls, enhanced trail system and a restored prairie maze -- was a favorite destination for Engledow and his grandchildren.

Cheers to all who helped bring this beautiful community space to life.

It is an honor to share that our colleague and friend Dan Kinkead, is the recipient of AIA Detroit's 2023 Charles Blessing Award.

This award is bestowed upon a member of the design community who shows leadership in planning and civic issues and exemplifies the vision, commitment and accomplishments of visionary Detroit city planner, architect, engineer and educator Charles A. Blessing, FAIA, who devoted his career to providing a higher quality of life for all.

Please join us in congratulating Dan on the impressive achievement!

The American Institute of Architects has recognized the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Worcester Outpatient Clinic in its Healthcare Design Awards program honoring the best of design, planning and research.

The new outpatient clinic provides convenient, comprehensive healthcare to the area’s veterans. SmithGroup’s design for the clinic honors the service and sacrifice of veterans, while also fitting seamlessly into the the larger context of the UMass Chan Medical School campus.

“One thing that is unique about this project is that the team relied on the Framework for Design Excellence as a serious design tool. In its modest way, the clinic also enhances the overall campus, demonstrating the team’s careful consideration from a campus-planning standpoint,” said a member of the jury.

Congrats to our project team, our client and our partners on this prestigious honor!

https://www.smithgroup.com/news/2023/veterans-affairs-outpatient-clinic-recognized-by-american-institute-of-architects

📍 Worcester, MA
📷 Anton Grassl

Suffolk Construction

With the annual The American Institute of Architects Conference (A’23) in San Francisco last week, our SmithGroup team members hosted a speakeasy-themed happy hour Wednesday evening to welcome those visiting. It was a great way to kick off the conference and enjoy the company of new and familiar faces.

During this and given anti-Pride sentiment, we believe it is more important than ever to publicly reaffirm our values at SmithGroup and demonstrate our solidarity with the community.

We remain committed to our promise to for our clients, our communities and ourselves, and believe that promise includes cultivating a design culture that recognizes that a diversity of viewpoints and identities make for better design solutions.

Moreover, we continue to strive to create inclusive design processes for all projects, finding more ways to engage with the communities that we serve.

We will always endeavor to be a workplace that welcomes, invests in and empowers our colleagues of all identities and backgrounds, and we continue to evolve our corporate policies to cultivate an equitable environment for all.

As the fight to uphold equality under the law has intensified recently, we choose to align with the 2023 theme selected by NYC Pride: Strength in Solidarity and will continue actively demonstrating our alliance with the LGBTQIA+ community, because we are all better together.

Five outstanding design students have been selected to receive a 2023 SmithGroup Justice Equity Diversity and Inclusion Scholarship. Each is awarded $6000 in tuition support and a paid summer internship in one of our offices.

Lauryn Cameron is an interior design student at UW-Madison School of Human Ecology

Juliana Cardozo Chamorro is a landscape architecture student at Illinois Institute of Technology

Sara Dancy is a civil engineering student at Michigan Tech Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering

Vanessa Giraldo is an architecture student at UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design

Bria Miller is an architecture student at Howard University

This annual scholarship program is one way we are fostering a more and design industry by investing in the next generation of design talent.

As we look forward to welcoming them into our offices for their internships, please join us in celebrating these five emerging designers!



https://www.smithgroup.com/news/2023/smithgroup-awards-2023-justice-equity-diversity-and-inclusion-scholarships

We are celebrating at SmithGroup by advancing our understanding and appreciation of the diversity of cultural backgrounds and identities within the collective and community. We are grateful to learn more about the rich variety of traditions, values and experiences that our colleagues are generously sharing in their own voices.