From the Dean: September 2024
The start of the new academic year is a time of renewal and excitement. There are so many emotions and preparations happening at once. As we enter a new year, the ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½app welcomes a record 1,041 students! As a college, we continue to see consistent growth in interest in our programs, and I am very excited about the new curricular developments our programs have been working on, including the Bachelor of Arts in Integrated Design and the Built Environment, the Bachelor of Applied Science in Construction Technology, the Master of Fine Arts in Historic Preservation, and the revival of the Master of Science in Architecture.
The demand for our disciplines continues to be an excellent challenge, and in response, we are continuing to grow our faculty lines to accommodate this growth. The Department of Interior Design has added two new tenure-track faculty lines and has just hired the college’s first Assistant Professor of Practice, and the Department of Building Construction Science is kicking off their search for a new Professor of Practice line, as well as bringing onboard a new postdoctoral fellow this year. Additionally, across the college, we have also seen a very positive growth in graduate teaching assistants, who bring a great value of their experience and enthusiasm into our undergraduate courses.
Our primary mission is always focused on our students and their success, and I am incredibly proud of the work we are doing to provide them with new advanced technologies and undergraduate research opportunities that will prepare them to become future leaders in the world of design and the built environment. Through the actively engaged research our faculty are conducting, our students are getting a first-hand view of innovation and experimentation that will prepare them for the rapidly changing landscape of our shared disciplines. Our research activities help us support infrastructural growth in advanced technologies in design and construction, which in turn are helping us shape the future.
I also share with you that Dr. Shaw, our provost, asked that I step into an additional leadership role and serve as the interim dean of the Graduate School. I take on this challenge in part because our college is actively growing its graduate presence, and being able to learn and work closely with the Graduate School will help our academic units move forward in these goals more smoothly. As I work with the Graduate School to help them determine what is next for their leadership, I appreciate the leadership within CAAD and within the Graduate School who are working with me hand in hand to move us all forward.
Onward and Upward,
Angi Elsea Bourgeois, Ph.D.
Dean | College of Architecture, Art, and Design
Interim Dean | The Graduate School