Image courtesy of Tulane University School of Architecture

Located in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the heart of the Gulf Coast, is Tulane University's School of Architecture. Rooted within the institution is an academic environment that houses its architecture, preservation, and real estate development graduate programs. In this feature, we take a closer look at the school's mission, its goals for its students and faculty, and how it aims to foster an environment of socially responsible learning.

According to Director of Graduate Architecture Benjamin J. Smith, Ph.D., the school's graduate programs share a "commitment to design excellence and social responsibility. With studio, seminar, and lecture courses that bridge intellectual, technical, social, and physical areas, our graduate students examine architecture by understanding its discipline and its consequence. To impact culture in positive ways, our students use architecture to ask challenging questions and deliver meaningful responses."

To learn more about the school's graduate programs, Archinect spoke with Smith, Assistant Director of Admissions William Wildman, Interim Director of Historic Preservation Laura Blokker, and Director of Sustainable Real Estate Development Casius Pealer. Together we discuss the school's academic environment, what prospective students can expect, and what makes their programs a staple within New Orleans' architectural academia.

Tulane's Academic Environment

What does Tulane School of Architecture do differently and how does it push its students? 

William Wildman: Tulane School of Architecture offers a unique academic environment with a profound focus on academic research in one of the nation’s oldest and most culturally rich cities. With the built environment of New Orleans as a backdrop to any Tulane experience, students are introduced to the modern problems the city and our world faces within the context of the historic fabric of the city. By confronting these issues head-on, students are given a broader understanding of the global application of solutions found within our regional context.

Laura Blokker: We are very focused on practical work and skill building for professional practice, as well as research and community engagement. We push students to perform as professionals among colleagues and stakeholders.

I often joke about the fact that New Orleans is at the mouth of the Mississippi River and the mercy of the Gulf of Mexico, but this reality is what makes Tulane and New Orleans the most relevant place to study the built environment. - William Wildman

What are some of the advantages of the school’s context—being in New Orleans and its focus on architecture, preservation, and urbanism? How do you think they help make the program unique? 

Wildman: I often joke about the fact that New Orleans is at the mouth of the Mississippi River and the mercy of the Gulf of Mexico, but this reality is what makes Tulane and New Orleans the most relevant place to study the built environment. Tulane often leads countless academic discussions about water management, river delta urbanism, and global responses to weather disasters. Our location in New Orleans also opens the door to conversations about the cultural and social impacts of these systems and their relativity to other areas of our world.

Blokker: New Orleans is simply an incomparable place to study preservation. One cannot turn a corner without coming upon a historic building with a unique and compelling story to tell; and each is set in a context of all of the challenges of greatest concern today, including racism, affordable housing, and climate change. New Orleans is a unique city, but it is also a place where students can grow as global citizens and learn preservation skills applicable across the world.

New Orleans is a unique city, but it is also a place where students can grow as global citizens and learn preservation skills applicable across the world. - Laura Blokker

Confronting Academic and Social Challenges 

When searching for the right architecture program, prospective graduate students not only look for what the program will provide them but, more specifically, what the institution's culture foster and discuss. We asked each department about its curriculum, the qualities that help students flourish in the program, and how they responded to racial justice-focused protests.

When it comes to adjusting in a post-Covid world amidst racial and social injustices, Tulane shares its plans to pivot towards a learning environment where progressive steps are taken. When seeking prospective applicants, Director of Graduate Architecture Benjamin J. Smith, Ph.D., encourages students to approach architecture with curiosity. 

As a graduate student, you have the opportunity to explore complex ideas about the built environment, but also have the responsibility to render visionary contributions through your work. Believe that anything is possible - Benjamin J. Smith

"Explore the field’s breadth without losing sight of ways to engage subjects with precision. Experiment and execute ideas and objects, concepts and buildings that intersect function and abstraction, need and desire, and the virtual and the actual. Architectural work that operates within these relations contributes to a philosophy about design that challenges boundaries, pursues freedoms, and exceeds conventions. As a graduate student, you have the opportunity to explore complex ideas about the built environment, but also have the responsibility to render visionary contributions through your work. Believe that anything is possible."

Casius Pealer, JD, Director of Sustainable Real Estate Development shares, "Tulane is a predominantly white institution (PWI) in a city that is majority Black. While Tulane's demographics with respect to BIPOC students and faculty reflect national averages, the stubborn inadequacy of these numbers weakens the entire profession. At Tulane, our internal discussions on this topic have been led in parallel by student-driven activism as well as a genuine commitment by our faculty and dean."

"Many faculty are doing innovative work independently, but our collective work is focused on three areas: individual relationships and understanding, historical and professional context, and educational diversity and quality. Although these formal discussions are focused on the School itself, this work is strengthened by the school's recent history of community-based collaborative design in surrounding communities. This engaged academic work is one of the reasons students and faculty come to Tulane in the first place, and we are finally turning some of that design expertise internally to improve the School itself. If you want to see how architecture and design can advance peace and justice in the classroom as well as in the surrounding community, we hope you will join us here at Tulane."

On Friday, October 23rd Tulane School of Architecture will host its Graduate Open House from 10am - 12pm CT (3 - 5pm GMT).  Open to all prospective students looking to learn more about each program and connect with admissions click here to learn more about the virtual event and register. Students will be able to meet their program directors, alumni and current students, virtually tour the historic Richardson Memorial Hall, and discover the many resources available at one of the nation's top research university. Register in advance here. The virtual event will be held over Zoom.