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NewSchool of Architecture & Design

Teaching Toward an Inclusive Architecture Industry

August 28, 2023 By admin

Yolanda Velazco, a top-notch designer at Platt/Whitelaw, is more than just an architecture instructor teaching at Southwestern College.

Having grown up in Mexico, and even having attended Southwestern College herself, Yolanda knows that navigating a college experience in a different country comes with a learning curve. Many of her students at Southwestern College grew up in Mexico.

Un-clashing cultures

“They’re coming from a different system, and there’s culture shock, too, even though we’re a border city,” said Yolanda. “Many know some English, but I can see how they struggle when they try to get into classes and things like that. I can help provide more than just an architectural education because I understand what they’re going through.”

She has provided this help through her stints teaching Studio 1, Studio 2 and Introduction to Architecture at Southwestern College in Chula Vista. This fall will mark her third semester of teaching.

“I’ve taught students of all ages and from very diverse backgrounds,” she said. “Some of my students are older than me. Some already finished their degree in architecture in Mexico. Regardless, I try to focus on how the system works as much as how to design.”

Yolanda says that she and some of her fellow teaching instructors have thought about creating a class focused on the differences between architecture in the U.S. and in Mexico, because those differences can be so stark.

Well-rounded education

Yolanda was surprised that the Introduction to Architecture class became her favorite to teach, even though the studio classes inspire her when her students push the boundaries of design and present new ideas.

“I share a lot of my experiences in the Introduction to Architecture class, and we talk about every aspect of what they may find themselves doing with an architecture education,” she said.

A lot of the course is driven by questions from the students themselves.

“I want them to feel more comfortable and informed about the decision they’re making,” she added. “I don’t want them to be scared, but I try to be realistic. I think about what I would have liked to know as a student.”

Fortunately, it’s a student body that’s not likely to scare easily.

“My students are super hard workers. Most are attending school while working full time,” said Yolanda.

Breaking barriers

While their drive is admirable, the students’ economic circumstances can be daunting when they think about supplementing the two-year associate degree they can earn at Southwestern College with a follow-on, baccalaureate degree.

“The closest public college they can attend to earn that full degree is California State University Pomona,” said Yolanda, who is a graduate of that program. “It’s difficult to get in, even as a transfer. You submit your portfolio, and based on that, they could send you down to first year, which would mean you’d still have to do five years of study.”

NewSchool of Architecture & Design is in San Diego, but it’s private and may be cost-prohibitive for some. If Southwestern students want to pursue a four- or five-year degree at either institution, they will need to pay rent if living away from family and will probably have less hours to work a job.

It’s this plight that has inspired Southwestern College to apply for the right to offer a baccalaureate degree (four- or five-year degree) in Architecture. Time will tell if the effort succeeds.

“We’ve been creating an elite major,” says Yolanda. She’s concerned that barriers exist to getting more minorities and people of color into architecture.

“Coming to Platt/Whitelaw made me feel comfortable because its leadership is diverse,” she said, but she added that it hadn’t been her impression of most architecture firms she had encountered.

Platt/Whitelaw Architects Principal Naveen Waney said, “Yolanda is a creative, motivated, strong-minded person. Once she gets something in her head, she will make sure she explores the subject to the fullest and returns with a responsive solution. That’s a trait you cannot teach and makes her a great teacher for budding architects.”

Words of advice

Yolanda also wants to make sure that architecture students master foundational skills.

“I feel with the technology and all tools available now, we’re losing the basics,” she said. “As a student, it’s hard to understand why hand drafting is important, but you always need to know the basics first to effectively use technology as a tool. I feel like I get picky about how graphics should look and plans should read, but those are your instructions to the person who’s going to build it.”

She added one last piece of advice for up-and-coming architects.

“You’re not supposed to know it all. Ask questions. There’s so much information out there.”

Filed Under: news Tagged With: baccalaureate degree, Diversity, education, Inclusive, Introduction to Architecture, NewSchool of Architecture & Design, Platt/Whitelaw Architects, Southwestern College, teaching, Yolanda Velazco

Culturally Centric Design for Memory Care Facilities

June 27, 2023 By admin

Many of our designers started as students at NewSchool of Architecture & Design. Some of our staff taught at NewSchool, and we have a long history of taking on NewSchool interns. We’re proud to announce that Emad Abdulwajid, our most recent NewSchool intern, is now our newest full-time staff member!

Emad just completed his senior thesis, and it’s a great example of why we think so highly of both Emad and NewSchool.

Emad’s thesis imagined an architectural plan for a memory care facility tailored to Indian immigrants.

From a design perspective, memory care facilities in the U.S., according to Emad, “usually cater to the culture they’re in, but the U.S. is a melting pot.”

People of other cultures are not immune to memory loss, but family members don’t feel comfortable housing their loved ones in a residential environment that doesn’t feel familiar.

Emad drew from personal experience. One of his family members is experiencing dementia, and Emad noticed that this loved one was more comfortable while visiting India, where he grew up.

“A lot of memory loss patients revert back to a childlike sense and what they grew up with is more familiar,” said Emad.

To inform his design, Emad relied on research journals and case studies. He also reviewed photos he had taken on trips to India and identified the commonalities between the architecture of different villages. He even conducted feedback interviews with stakeholders representing his target audience.

He designed a dense, compact village that pulled in defining points of Indian architecture by using distinctive window design, apertures, screening systems, roof tiles and more.

His design was well received by his professors. They encouraged him to push the Indian details and architectural language even further if he ever has the chance to bring this unique idea to fruition.

Emad would welcome the opportunity. Substantial growth in demand for memory care facilities is projected in the U.S. in the next 10 years. Moreover, culturally grounded design could help overcome the cultural stigma felt by many third world immigrants about putting their parents in care facilities.

“We need to offer a better sense of the life they want and that they remember,” said Emad.

Emad spent two quarters of his last school year developing his thesis project, but we think the idea will have relevance for years to come. For any senior living developers out there, we have a great architectural firm in mind for a culturally centric memory care project (hint, hint), and you know who will be on that team!

Filed Under: news Tagged With: dementia, Emad Abdulwajid, Indian immigrants, memory care facility, NewSchool of Architecture & Design, Platt/Whitelaw Architects

Platt/Whitelaw Pays Tribute to National Hispanic Heritage Month

September 27, 2021 By admin

Platt/Whitelaw Architects has always embraced the beautiful diversity of our region’s population, and it’s consistently been reflected within our staff. Collectively, our team speaks five languages and represents heritage from countries around the world.

In this spirit, we’re paying tribute to National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15) by highlighting Platt/Whitelaw staff members Yolanda Velazco, LEED GA and Richard (Ricky) Sanchez.

As stated on the National Hispanic Heritage Month website, “We celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month to recognize the achievements and contributions of Hispanic American champions who have inspired others to achieve success.”

We’re proud to have our own Hispanic American Champions on our staff.

Yolanda Velazco

Yolanda grew up in San Diego but attended school in Tijuana and spoke only Spanish growing up. Despite earning a full-ride scholarship to a university in Mexico, Yolanda decided she wanted to attend college in California.

Her family was concerned that her language skills would hold her back, but Yolanda wasn’t deterred. She spent three years at Southwestern College, the first of which was comprised entirely of ESL classes. She quickly gravitated toward architecture and earned an associate degree. From there, she was accepted as a third-year student at Cal Poly Pomona.

“It was a big struggle for me,” said Yolanda. “I had to figure it out, including loans and scholarships.”

Now she gives back to others facing the same struggles. A former classmate who ended up in charge of the architecture program at Southwestern provided Yolanda with an opportunity to assist in design reviews for the college’s architecture students and to speak with them about her experiences. Yolanda also mentored a student who was facing many of the same language barrier challenges Yolanda experienced.

She sees her bi-cultural experience as a strength and something that influences her work. Considering Platt/Whitelaw’s focus on civic work, “we’re designing for diversity,” Yolanda said. She’s also found that her bi-lingual skills help her connect with community members and stakeholders during design charettes and other outreach meetings.

“Often, people are surprised when I can switch to speaking Spanish,” she said. “Something changes on their faces, and I can tell it creates trust.”

Richard Sanchez

In contrast to Yolanda’s experience, Ricky’s immersion into American schooling happened earlier in his life, when his family moved to San Diego from Tijuana during his third-grade year of school.

“I hated it,” he said. “I was in bi-lingual classes until the end of junior high school. It was cool, though, that I got straight A’s from elementary school through high school.”

In fact, it was the opportunity for a better education for their kids that prompted his parents’ move to the States. Ricky became the first in his family to attend college when he earned a full-ride scholarship to San Diego State University.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering, he earned a second degree—this time in architecture—from NewSchool of Architecture & Design.

“I’m thankful to my family, and I’m proud of being Mexican and representing my culture in the U.S. architectural world,” he said.

Ricky loves travel and made a point of spending every weekend for more than two years traveling to a different part of Mexico to become more familiar with his home country. He brings an entire world of architectural inspiration to his work, having made at least one international trip to various countries around the globe each year since 2009—the pandemic year excepted.

“I love looking at different kinds of architecture and how spaces make people react a certain way,” he said.

The images included with this article represent some of Ricky’s travels and the inspiration he found. We’re thankful that he shared them with us. Make sure to like and subscribe!

To see more travel photos, browse to Ricky’s Instagram account here. ricky_trav3ls

His youtube account is here: youtube.com/c/rickytravels

We’re also thankful every day for our diverse staff and the richness their experiences and cultures bring to our work.

 

 

Filed Under: news Tagged With: culture, hispanic heritage month, Mexico, NewSchool of Architecture & Design, Ricky Sanchez, Yolanda Velazco

Platt/Whitelaw Architects Adds Two NewSchool Stars to its Team

September 22, 2021 By admin

By Sandra Gramley, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C and Naveen Waney, AIA

Introducing…two awesome new people at Platt/Whitelaw Architects!

We’re happy to welcome Project Coordinator Samantha Saltzman (Sam) and Intern Emad Abdulwajid to the Platt/Whitelaw team.

Sam earned her master’s degree from NewSchool of Architecture & Design in 2020 after graduating from Fordham University in New York City with a bachelor’s degree in Art History and Visual Arts. Currently, she’s pursuing the architectural licensing program through NCARB.

Before joining our team, Sam worked for several years designing accessory dwelling units. She’s got great experience mentoring and managing junior team members, coordinating with consultants and interfacing with clients. She’s also talented at organizing and multitasking.

Sam says she’s excited to tackle the broad range of public, education and civic architecture projects she’ll work on at Platt/Whitelaw.

Emad is earning his master’s degree in Architecture at NewSchool. He’s working with us through the IPAL fast-track to licensure program from NCARB. He’ll log work hours while still in school so that he can earn his architecture license more quickly.

Emad has a bachelor’s degree in Molecular Biology from UC San Diego. Combined with his current pursuit of architecture, his science degree gives him insight into human wellness and how it relates to architecture. We think this is a great match for our architectural work in education, recreation, community health and places of worship!

Through a human-centered design course at UC San Diego, Emad developed a web platform to help seniors and COVID-affected individuals feel more connected. While working in collaboration with Design for America, he also helped create a mobile-assisted robot protype to help people with chronic pain.

Through his internship with our firm, Emad is getting hands-on experience with important architecture fundamentals like renderings, construction submittal reviews and materials assessment and selection.

Great people make for great work product and a great workplace. We’re happy to have found two more greats to add to our dynamic team.

 

Filed Under: news Tagged With: Emad Abdulwajid, Employees, New Hires, NewSchool of Architecture & Design, Samantha Saltzman (Sam), team, UC San Diego

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