Bio
Brian Schermer is a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's School of Architecture and Urban Planning, where he has been a faculty member since 1999. His work bridges social research and architectural practice, with a focus on designing student life buildings and campus environments that foster student well-being and community engagement.
Since 2014, Brian has served as Principal and Director of Design Research at Workshop Architects, a nationally recognized firm specializing in the design of student life spaces for higher education. In this role, Brian leads the integration of social research into architectural programming. His work has influenced projects at leading universities, including the renovation of the Michigan Union at the University of Michigan, the Purdue Memorial Union renovation, and the Georgia Tech Campus Center. At Georgia Tech, Brian’s research helped shape the "distributed campus union" concept, making it easier for the university’s busy students to reset, restore, and refuel along a quarter-mile experiential path. His contributions at the University of Notre Dame’s Center for Diversity and Inclusion involved ensuring that the design prioritized discoverability and inclusivity for all students.
Brian’s research contributions have earned recognition, including the EDRA CORE (Certificate of Research Excellence) award for environmental design and the NCARB (National Council of Architectural Registration Boards) Prize for Creative Integration of Practice and the Academy. His "Campus Capital Mapping" tool has been implemented at leading institutions across the country, providing universities with critical insights into how campus spaces foster intellectual, social, restorative, and symbolic engagement among students.
Brian has served on over 25 PhD committees and more than 85 master's thesis committees, guiding the next generation of architects and researchers. His teaching focuses on integrating social research with design practice, most recently through studios that explore innovative solutions for age-integrated, active-living communities for seniors.
Education
Ph.D. in Architecture, University of Michigan
M. Arch., University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
B.A., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Research Focus
Architectural clients and the relationship between organizational and architectural change
Challenges in contemporary architectural practice
Courses
Arch 585 Research Methods
Arch 586 Programming for Arch Design
Arch 645/845 Workshop Studio
Arch 750 Pro-seminar in Environmental Design Research
Arch 785 Advanced Research Methods in Architecture
Selected Work
"Lost in the Translation: Project Partnering as a Model of Collaborative Design and Construction." Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture International Conference; Helsinki, Finland; July 27-30, 2003.
"Weaving the Institutional and the Practical in Everyday Architectural Ethics." Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Central Region Conference; Muncie, Indiana, October 24-26, 2003.
"Organization Clients and Architectural Communities of Practice: Material and Social Construction at the Chrysler Technology Center." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Michigan, 2002
"Post-Occupancy Evaluation and Organizational Learning," in Community: Evolution or revolution: Proceedings of the 33rd Annual Conference of the Environmental design Research Association in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, May 22-6, 2002.
"Client-Situated Architectural Practice: Implications for Architectural Education," Journal of Architectural Education, September 2001, 31-42
"Post-Occupancy Evaluation & Organizational Development: the Experience of the United States Postal Service." Co-author with Jay Farbstein, Min Kantrowitz, and John Hughes-Caley, Building Evaluation: Advances in Methods and Applications, Wolfgang F. E. Preiser (Ed.) New York: Plenum; 1989