On January 25, 2024, the AIANY WIA Committee held its 13th Annual Women in Architecture Recognition Award and Holiday Party at Brickworks Design Studio. Each year we celebrate the newly licensed female architects and support the next generation of emerging leaders in obtaining their license. We honor one recently licensed woman architect who demonstrates strong leadership skills and a commitment to the growth and advancement of our profession. The winner receives a $1,000 stipend towards travel and miscellaneous expenses at the AIA National Convention, which will be in Washington, D.C., on June 5-8, 2024.

We received many impressive applications for the Recognition Award, and we congratulate each for their meaningful contribution to the advancement of our profession. The finalists shared their personal experiences, challenges faced on the path to licensure, and advice. The WIA Committee noted that in 2023, the ratio of licensed AIANY women architects to men was approximately 1.5:1, a 50% increase since 2022. We were thrilled to announce this year’s 13th Annual Recognition Award recipient Nai-Hua Chen, AIA. From the judges’ comments, “Nai-Hua stood out for the strength of her achievements in each one of the four categories of leadership: Leadership in Design, Success in Professional Practice, Endorsing Workplace Culture, and Promoting Advocacy and Activism. (She) has developed strong technical expertise to push design and sustainability forward. She explores technologies to benefit the profession.”

In addition to the festivities and networking, we held raffle prizes. Three lucky winners walked away with a coveted Brickworks Design Studio gift bag, a copy of Women in Architecture – Past, Present, and Future, and the Grand Prize, dinner with a stellar woman architect, Annya Ramirez-Jimenez, AIA, Partner, Marvel. Thanks Annya!

We are especially grateful to Brickworks Design Studio for hosting us in their beautiful showroom with delicious food and drinks and contributing to our raffle prizes with a gift bag. This event would not have been possible without their generosity. A special thank you to our esteemed Recognition Award Jury: Arthi Krishnamoorthy, AIA, Senior Principal, TenBerke, Sandra McKee, FAIA, Owner & Founder, Yoshihara McKee Architects and Kaveri G. Singh, AIA, Higher Education Leader, Principal, DLR Group for their well-considered and thoughtful deliberation. A shout out to Melissa Chua of Lean by Design LLC for capturing the evening wonderfully in photography.

Thank you to everyone who attended our sold-out event to celebrate the newly licensed women architects. The WIA committee is grateful for everyone’s support, and we look forward to seeing you at our next event!