CABE to Host Summer Design Program for High School Juniors and Seniors

The award-winning College of Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) is offering high school students an innovative way to explore architectural-design fields with its new summer architecture academy.

The Architecture & Built Environment Academy is a virtual, three-week design program geared toward motivated rising high-school juniors and seniors “with a sincere interest in the architecture and construction fields.”

Between July 12 and 30, students will learn from Jefferson faculty and industry professionals and engage in design projects, research projects, and construction-firm visits conducted in an online environment. Each student will be assigned a mentor from the architecture, design and construction industries to help build the confidence and skills to apply to college in the future.

Through hands-on and real-world learning, students will have the opportunity to explore the architectural fields and get an understanding of different study options and career paths. Working with Jefferson faculty, alumni and students, participants will build a deep understanding of the architectural professions, says CABE Executive Dean Barbara Klinkhammer.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, we learned how exciting virtual learning can be,” Klinkhammer says. “We quickly realized that we could bring our award-winning, Jefferson Nexus-learning model focused on active, collaborative and real-world learning to a much bigger audience by creating a virtual summer academy.”

Areas of focus during the academy include architecture, interior design, landscape architecture and construction management.

During the first week (July 12-16), students will get an overview of those fields. During weeks two and three, students will take a deeper dive in the specific field which interests them most. The academy ends with an in-person summer architecture symposium on the East Falls Campus on Saturday, July 31.

Classes will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each weekday, via Zoom. The program fee is $200 per week, and full and partial scholarships are available.

“We are collaborating with the ACE Mentor Program and several industry partners who are generously supporting the Academy,” Klinkhammer says, noting that Stantec is providing scholarship support and mentorship offerings. “As a college, we are deeply committed to diversity, equity and inclusion, and we are encouraging students who identify as underrepresented minorities, as well as first-generation college students, to apply.”

Erike De Veyra, the summer program’s manager and instructor, says developing the content, working with faculty and facilitating the Career Discovery Week has been “a mini passion project.”

“Being an alumna and Filipina, I am even more excited to be part of this pipeline initiative that will expand a community of more diverse designers in schools and into the industry,” De Veyra says. “I am working hard to welcome students to an aspirational representation of the industry that is diverse and inclusive.”

More information about the courses is available via this link, and registration information can be found here.