Faculty Stories

Inside Fitzhugh Scott Fellow Iris Xiaoxue Ma’s Earth Material Research

During her final semester as a Fitzhugh Scott Faculty Fellow at the UWM School of Architecture & Urban Planning, Iris Xiaoxue Ma is transforming the Jim Shields Gallery into an active site of material research. Rather than presenting a static exhibition, Ma has reconfigured the gallery as a working ceramic studio and Earth Material Resource Center, where she foregrounds material testing, spatial limits, and slow decision-making.

Ghost Lab research project reframes architectural value through forgotten histories

For architecture professor Adam Thibodeaux, buildings are never just physical structures. They are records of human behavior shaped not only by original design intent, but by the improvised, often invisible adaptations made by people who relied on them most. Through an ongoing research initiative known as Ghost Lab, Thibodeaux and his students engage buildings with forgotten histories of use by marginalized communities.

Dong Gong of Vector Architects awarded 2025 Marcus Prize for Architecture

Dong Gong, founder and design principal at Beijing-based Vector Architects, has been named the recipient of the 2025 Marcus Prize, one of the world’s leading architecture awards honoring emerging international talent. The prize is administered biennially by the School of Architecture & Urban …

Urban Edge Award at UWM recognizes national voices on housing and the American city

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Architecture & Urban Planning (SARUP) has announced that the 2025 Urban Edge Award will support a major symposium and publication on housing in the American city, one of the most pressing issues of our time. Selected and curated by Assistant Professor Sam Schuermann, the symposium will gather leading architects, theorists, and educators for a three-day public program centered on the single-family lot.

Architecture faculty recognized with ACSA New Faculty Teaching Awards

Two SARUP faculty members have been recognized with the 2025 Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) New Faculty Teaching Award. The award acknowledges demonstrated excellence and innovation in teaching during the formative years of an architectural teaching career. This …