Black Women in Higher Education: Department of Architecture
AUTHOR: Simone Akila Ruskamp
Since its founding Howard University’s Department of Architecture has stressed the importance of a practitioner-based model, pushing Architecture students to move from praxis and theories of space and design to developing responsive environments for populations served. Within Howard’s College of Engineering and Architecture, a recent a wave of hiring has contributed to more representation of female faculty. Before this change, Howard’s Architecture department often went decades with no female faculty. This study demonstrates that women in architecture, specifically Black women architectural students, faculty, and staff at Howard University, are creating Black womanist theories of architecture, leading to a visible and groundbreaking shift in the Department’s culture. Many of the women profiled in this report broke new ground while also preparing space for those who would come after them; in this way, they have reshaped their environment to best support their community, a core element of successful architecture.