The School of Architecture and Design at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), with campuses in New York City and Old Westbury, Long Island, delivers a technology-driven, design-focused education across its Architecture, Interior Design, and Digital Art & Design programs.
As part of Archinect's School Partners initiative, the spotlight turns to eighteen distinguished faculty members and their objectives for advancing academic and professional excellence in the 2024/25 academic year.
Discover the diverse expertise and innovative contributions of each faculty member and what they hope to achieve at the NYIT SoAD below.
John Bermudez, specializes in architectural visualization and BIM-driven construction drawing techniques. In addition to teaching, he collaborates as a designer with Harlem-based Krajewski Architect and “et al. Collaborative” studio. At NYIT, he aims to inspire students to reach their full potential, encouraging curiosity and critical thinking. John's current research explores AI’s role in architectural representation, as well as parametric design and generative algorithms in computational architecture.
Architect Ezio Blasetti, known for his expertise in advanced design technologies, brings a wealth of experience to NYIT. A founding partner at Maeta Design, he bridges academic and professional pursuits, integrating robotic fabrication and AI into architectural workflows. Ezio aims to integrate AI, material science, and robotic fabrication into the school's curriculum, fostering innovative design methodologies that push the boundaries of architectural application and shape the future of the field.
Trudy Brens, Dominican American architect and Chair of NYIT School of Architecture and Design, has been a faculty member since 2013. As Associate Professor, she fosters exploration, research, and critical thinking in her students while strengthening the connection between academia and professional practice. Brens’ leadership has earned her recognition as a finalist for the NYIT Presidential Excellence Award. A licensed architect, she has contributed to notable projects at firms such as Gannett/USA Today Headquarters, MoMA expansion, and 5 Times Square. Founder of Brens + Petruccelli Architects, Trudy holds a Master of Architecture from Parsons and is active in NOMA.
Marta Caldeira, an architect and architectural historian, is an Assistant Professor at SoAD, specializing in modern architecture’s transnational impact on politics and society. She is currently working on her book The Historical Imperative: Architecture, Democracy, and the Critique of the Modern City, which examines urban democracy in 1970s Southern Europe. Her work has been published in journals such as Perspecta and Log and is supported by institutions like the Canadian Centre for Architecture. In her new role at NYIT, she was awarded an ISRC 2024 Grant to investigate architecture and urbanism in mid-century Latin America.
Robert Cody, a registered architect in New York and New Jersey, has over 25 years of experience across a diverse range of projects, from wood-frame houses to office buildings, renovations, towers, and solar detoxification facilities, including work with The Museum of Modern Art. He has taught design studio, building construction, architectural theory, and coordinated study abroad programs in Italy. Chair of architecture on Long Island since 2011, Robert is committed to advancing architectural education, bridging academia with practice, and exploring urban design in his latest research on Alvar Aalto.
Matias del Campo is an architect, designer, and theorist serving as Director of the MS ACT program (Architecture, Computational Technology) and Associate Professor at NYIT. Co-founder of SPAN with Sandra Manninger, he is celebrated for pioneering computational design methodologies through a "design ecology" framework. His work, held in permanent collections like the FRAC and MAK, has earned honors such as the Accelerate@CERN fellowship and ACADIA Innovative Research Award. Author of Neural Architecture, Diffusions, Machine Hallucinations, and Artificial Intelligence and Architecture, he engages students with AI-driven design to explore ethical, aesthetic, and environmental impacts. Upcoming exhibitions, lectures, and two new books will further showcase his design philosophy.
Associate Professor at NYIT, Hyun-Tae Jung is an expert in the history and theory of 20th-century American and East Asian architecture. Trained at the University of Seoul and holding a doctorate from Columbia University, his research delves into the global context of architectural history. His book, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill: The Architecture of Organization from the Great Depression to the Cold War, was published in 2022. Recognized for his teaching, Jung has received numerous awards, including NYIT SoAD's New Faculty Excellence Award.
Dongsei Kim, an architect, urbanist, and Assistant Professor, investigates “inclusion” and “exclusion” in spatial practices through architecture, urban design, and nation-state borders. His internationally recognized research on the Korean DMZ and mapping has been exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale and Seoul Biennale and published in journals like Topos and Volume. His 2022 book, Drawing Hwa-Chaeng: Mapping Contested Territories for Imagination, explores how creative mapping can transform disputed areas into inclusive spaces. At NYIT, Dongsei continues to advance his research on the “agency of spatial practice” by exploring concepts of nation-state borders, diasporic identities, land acknowledgments, and creative mapping.
Sandra Manninger, architect, educator, and co-founder of SPAN Architecture and ARILab, has gained international recognition for her architectural projects, showcased at events such as La Biennale di Venezia and the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna. Her works are in the permanent collections of prestigious institutions, including FRAC Centre-Val de Loire and The Design Museum in Munich. A recipient of the MAK Schindler scholarship and former fellow at CERN, she has taught at universities worldwide. At NYIT, Sandra focuses on integrating computational tools and exploring robotics and machine learning to innovate architectural design and fabrication processes.
Beau McGhee, a Game Designer and NYU GameCenter graduate, designs with the philosophy that games are art, valuing emotional resonance over mainstream appeal. His work explores human connection, and as an educator, he fosters creativity through project-based learning and an "un-grading" approach. Passionate about advancing play-based learning at NYIT, Beau aims to expand SAOD’s Game Design Concentration and integrate play as a central element in his classroom.
Dr. Athina Papadopoulou, Assistant Professor of Architecture, Health, and Design at NYIT, leads research in programmable wearable environments for personal well-being and bio-based material fabrication for environmental health. As co-founder of ReMEDiaLab, she integrates her expertise from MIT — where she developed “Affective Matter” to support emotional regulation — into her current work on therapeutic wearables for autism. Her innovative research, published in journals like Nature, has been showcased internationally. At NYIT, Athina collaborates across disciplines to develop impactful, community-focused projects, fostering student involvement and advancing design solutions for mental and physical disabilities.
Francesca Romana Forlini, Visiting Assistant Professor at NYIT, explores the intersection of feminism, cultural sociology, and spatial design history, emphasizing women's contributions to interior design and architecture. A PhD graduate of the RCA and Fulbright scholar, Francesca’s work has been presented at international conferences and in journals like Urban Planning and Interiority. She has contributed to publications such as KoozArch and Oblique, and co-authored The Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Palava City. At NYIT, Francesca aims to solidify interior design theory as a multidisciplinary field, advancing inclusive design histories and pedagogies that prioritize marginalized designers and alternative conceptual frameworks.
Evan Shieh, Assistant Professor of Architecture and founding principal of Emergent Studio, is a multifaceted architect, urbanist, and educator. His research explores the intersection of infrastructure, technology, and urbanism, focusing on the spatial implications of emerging mobility technologies. His teaching has been recognized with prestigious awards, including the 2023 New Faculty Teaching Award from ACSA/AIAS and the 2023 Presidential Excellence in Teaching Award from NYIT. He recently published the book Autonomous Urbanism: Towards a New Transitopia, which was launched with a public lecture this past fall and will be curated as a spring 2025 exhibition. Evan advances both his professional practice and academic research endeavors simultaneously, leveraging productive synergies from both to inform his teaching at NYIT.
Clarke Snell brings expertise from a career dedicated to sustainable, resilient building systems and zero-resource architecture. He is a licensed architect with hands-on experience in pioneering hempcrete and geopolymer cement structures in the U.S. and a record of teaching studios and core courses in architecture and engineering. His research spans low-tech, low-carbon envelopes, high-performance material science, and sustainable design pedagogy, including design/build student projects like the 2015 Solar Decathlon winner. Clarke's focus at NYIT is embedding carbon-neutrality into the design process, equipping future architects with tools for integrated form and performance.
A global expert in landscape urbanism, Jeannette Sordi brings a wealth of experience to NYIT. Trained in Europe and the Americas, her work tackles climate resilience, resource extraction, and social equity through innovative landscape design solutions. Her research on adapting vulnerable communities to environmental challenges is documented in Ecological Design. Strategies for the Vulnerable City and the upcoming Wood Ecologies. Innovating social architecture in Uruguay. As Visiting Associate Professor at the SoAD, Jeannette aims to strengthen the nexus of teaching, research, and practice to address pressing environmental and social issues, including climate change, housing affordability, and equitable access to urban resources.
Dr. Andreas Theodoridis, an architect, engineer, and educator with over 25 years of experience, is dedicated to creating innovative, life-enhancing solutions at the intersection of architecture and environmental technology. Holding a PhD in Advanced Building Systems from RPI's CASE, he currently develops phytoremediative ceramic systems to combat air pollution through his practice, United Atmospheres, in collaboration with institutions like Yale CEA. His acclaimed work has been showcased globally, including at the Venice Biennale and NYCx Design. As an Assistant Professor at NYIT, Andreas advances his research while preparing future architects to address pressing environmental challenges.
With a background at firms such as DS+R, Eisenman Architects, and EMBT, Florencia Vetcher brings a wealth of experience to her role as Director of Interior Design at NYIT SoAD. Her commitment to practical education is evident in her focus on integrating cutting-edge technologies like 3D printing and scanning to virtual and augmented reality and AI into the curriculum. By leveraging NYIT's resources and fostering a hands-on approach, Florencia aims to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in the evolving field of interior design.
An accomplished architect and educator, Lyla Wu's experience spans work with firms like AEDAS, Greg Lynn Form, Graftlab, and Holzer Kobler Architekturen before founding Neuni, a practice embodying her commitment to sustainable design with China’s first design-focused maker space and material library. Recognized in Loha Magazine's “100 Power Ladies in Sustainability,” she regularly speaks at TEDx and collaborates with brands like Prada. Now a full-time teaching assistant professor at NYIT, Lyla is developing a material library and forging industry partnerships to advance sustainable design education.
Interested in learning more about what NYIT School of Architecture and Design has to offer? Take a look at the Fall 2024 series of public lectures and events below, visit their calendar to stay informed on upcoming events, and follow the NYIT SoAD school profile on Archinect for continued news and editorial coverage.
Alexander Walter grew up in East Germany with plenty of Bratwurst. He studied Architecture and Media Design at Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Germany, and participated in foreign exchange programs with Washington-Alexandria Architecture Consortium in Alexandria, Virginia and Waseda University in ...
No Comments
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.