View over the shoulder of a student holding an artist's triangle. and pencil, in process of drawing on a white sheet of paper which is brightly highlighted, with the rest of the image darkened by a significant vignette.

Department of Architecture

A tradition of excellence

The Department of Architecture’s century-strong traditions of drawing, model-making, community outreach/service learning, and hands-on construction prepare students to explore innovative models of architectural practice as well as non-traditional approaches, including design-build and digital fabrication.

The award-winning faculty are active in professional practice, research and service projects, and national and international competitions, as well as scholarly activities. Thanks to a rigorous curriculum with numerous opportunities to engage in professional projects and work with external stakeholders, graduates are prepared for wherever their design degrees may take them.

Alumni Spotlight

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alumni spotlight

Marilia Rodrigues

Marilia Rodrigues is a principal at KieranTimberlake, an internationally recognized architecture firm noted for its commitment to research, innovation, and invention. She brings multiple technologies, voices, and talents together to achieve award-winning designs.

kierantimberlake.com

Faculty Spotlight

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Alexandra Staub

Professor of Architecture; Affiliate faculty member: Penn State Rock Ethics Institute

Sandra Staub's research focuses on how our built environment shapes, and is shaped by, our understanding of culture. As a member of the Department of Architecture’s Culture, Society and Space Research Cluster, Staub has supervised research projects that have examined cultural aspects of housing and urban spaces in countries as diverse as the United States, Russia, China and Iran. Her recent book, "The Routledge Companion to Modernity, Space and Gender," looks at modernity in various cultural contexts, how this concept is expressed spatially through architecture and urban form, and how this has affected women in their everyday lives.

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