Architecture is often criticized for its lack of diversity, and many feel that education is a key way to address the issue for the future. In that vein, Harvard's GSD announced yesterday the establishment of the Philip Freelon Fellowship Fund, designed to "provide expanded academic opportunities to African American and other under-represented architecture and design students at the GSD."

At the announcement, Philip Freelon of Perkins+Will noted the significance of such fellowships in encouraging (and attracting) diversity at the GSD: “As the design profession continues to attract a more diverse talent base, this gift will provide students of color with financial assistance that could make pursuing an advanced degree at the GSD possible. It’s an important step in broadening the GSD’s reach.”

GSD Dean Mohsen Mostafavi thanked Perkins+Will and Phil Freelon, referring to how “the creativity, dynamism, and success of our GSD community are enriched by and even contingent on an increasingly diverse student body.”

A former Loeb Fellow (1989-90), Freelon was appointed to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts in 2012 by President Barack Obama, and currently serves as the Managing and Design Director of Perkins+Will's North Carolina practice. His former practice, The Freelon Group, was bought by Perkins+Will in 2014. His portfolio includes the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, the Historic Emancipation Park in Houston, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.