School of Architecture + Design offers high school workshop

Virginia Tech’s School of Architecture + Design in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies is offering its seventh annual “Inside Architecture” summer workshop for students entering 9th through 12th grades. Workshop sessions will be held on Monday, June 26, through Friday, June 30, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

For future college students thinking of a career or an education in architecture, this weeklong session exposes them to the ways an architect thinks and works. Primarily a hands-on experience, students work with long-time educators and practitioners in exercises designed to stimulate discussion and discovery of issues affecting the profession. Inside Architecture students are also able to interact with architecture and design students who are on campus for summer studios. No prior course or subject experience is necessary to enroll, just the initiative to break the bounds of conventional modes of thinking.

Inside Architecture is taught by Donna Dunay, A.I.A., professor of architecture and chair of the International Archive of Women in Architecture; Robert Dunay, A.I.A., I.D.S.A., the T. A. Carter Professor of Architecture and director of the industrial design program; and Ben Gauslin, the Carrier-Johnson Fellow and a doctoral student in architecture.

Donna Dunay has conducted extensive research and field work concerning patterns of development and community structure. Her work has been recognized with three statewide Excellence in Architecture Awards from the American Institute of Architects and a Distinguished Planning Award from the Virginia Chapter of the American Planning Association.

Robert Dunay is a generalist in pedagogy and practice. His work and interests have ranged from planning and architecture to graphics and product design. He serves as a primary faculty for Virginia Tech’s entry in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon competition and recently designed a house for the ABC network’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” His work has been published in international and national journals, as well as regional and state publications.

Gauslin’s research is focused on pedagogical and practical applications of computer-aided design. For nearly a decade, Gauslin practiced architecture in Chicago, working on community centers, banks, healthcare facilities, houses, and the restoration of a Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie House. He is also a web developer, and has designed and programmed numerous websites for architects, designers, and educational institutions.

“High school students who have completed this course have reported that they are more confident about what they can expect college academics to be like, but they most enjoy learning about a possible career choice and discovering the associated discipline of industrial design,” said Robert Dunay.

The cost of the program is $430 (including registration fee). Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis; the deadline for registration is Friday, June 9. This popular course fills up fast; to make a reservation, go to www.caus.vt.edu to download a registration form, which must be submitted with a $40 registration fee.

Inside Architecture participants can also get a preview of living at college if they chose to spend the week in a campus residence hall and eat in the university’s award-winning dining centers. Staying in a residence hall is $23.63/day (double occupancy) and meals are $19.69/day.

For more information about Inside Architecture or about how to make arrangements to stay on campus, contact Wendy Vaughn, at (540) 231-5383; vaughnw@vt.edu; or 201 Cowgill Hall (0205), Blacksburg, VA 24061.

The College of Architecture and Urban Studies is one of the largest of its type in the nation. The college is composed of two schools and the departments of landscape architecture, building construction, and art and art history. The School of Architecture + Design includes programs in architecture, industrial design and interior design. The School of Public and International Affairs includes programs in urban affairs and planning, public administration and policy, and government and international affairs. The college enrolls more than 2,000 students offering 22 degrees programs taught by 160 faculty members.