Study Architecture 
ProPEL 2009 NAAB Accreditation Review
ACSA Responds to NAAB’s 2008 Draft Procedures
Updated-April 17, 2009
ACSA organizes a number of task forces and committees to advise the board of directors and implement ACSA policies and programs. ACSA’s Conditions & Procedures Task Force was charged with advising the ACSA board of directors on issues related to the National Architectural Accrediting Board’s accreditation policies, as set out in the Conditions and Procedures documents.
Thank You
ACSA has delivered its comments on the Public Comment Edition of the 2009 NAAB Conditions. We thank everyone who provided feedback through the online survey and other means.
Downloads
Timeline
February–March 2008:
Members provide feedback via email and Web.
March 2008:
ACSA Annual Meeting to feature session on ARC; Annual Business Meeting scheduled as last official forum for input.
April 2008:
ACSA Board of Directors to make final revisions to ARC report.
June 2008:
Leaders of five collateral organizations meet to review NAAB’s work on emerging accreditation models and changes to Conditions.
July 2008:
NAAB board to meet to review final refinements to emerging accreditation models and changes to Conditions.
September 2008:
NAAB collects feedback on its “Fusion Model,” which proposes significant changes to the structure of the accreditation process.
October 22–23, 2008:
Accreditation Review Conference scheduled, Tucson, Arizona.
November 2008–Feburary 2009:
NAAB develops draft Conditions for Accreditation.
March 2009–June 1, 2009:
Feedback period on draft NAAB Conditions.
March 2008:
ACSA Annual Meeting to feature session on ARC; Annual Business Meeting scheduled as last official forum for input.
April 2008:
ACSA Board of Directors to make final revisions to ARC report.
June 2008:
Leaders of five collateral organizations meet to review NAAB’s work on emerging accreditation models and changes to Conditions.
July 2008:
NAAB board to meet to review final refinements to emerging accreditation models and changes to Conditions.
September 2008:
NAAB collects feedback on its “Fusion Model,” which proposes significant changes to the structure of the accreditation process.
October 22–23, 2008:
Accreditation Review Conference scheduled, Tucson, Arizona.
November 2008–February 2009:
NAAB develops draft Conditions for Accreditation.
March 2009–June 1, 2009:
Feedback period on draft NAAB Conditions.
What Is the ARC? The October 2008 NAAB Accreditation Review Conference (ARC) is the profession’s opportunity to revise and reaffirm the minimum standards for professional education of architects. The ARC will involve the revision and reaffirmation of the NAAB Conditions and Procedures for Accreditation documents through a deliberative process involving the four collaterals that directly support NAAB as well as other interest groups.
ACSA has done three things to date to prepare for the ARC.
(1) ACSA Topic Groups
(2) Core Values in Architectural Education
(3) NAAB Resource Groups
(1) Topic Groups. In November 2006 the ACSA board of directors identified 10 topic areas under which to organize work groups. Eight of these have produced a final report as of October 1, 2007 (see the links at the top of this page), after working throughout the spring and summer to develop critiques of NAAB Conditions and Procedures. The reports include recommendations for short and long term changes to NAAB accreditation standards and architectural education generally.
Each group has an invited leader and a board liaison, who work together to guide the group’s work. The list of groups is below.
Topic Groups
- Architecture as a Discipline (leader: Kendra Schank Smith, Ryerson U.)
- Community Responsibility & Society (Marilys Nepomechie, Florida International U.)
- Global Change (Kim Tanzer)
- Integrated Practice/Comprehensive Design (Renee Cheng, U. of Minnesota)
- Interiors (Brian Kernaghan, Rhode Island School of Design; Anders Nereim, School of the Art Institute of Chicago)
- Internship (Kenneth Schwartz)
- Leadership (Graham Livesey) (organized in October 2007)
- Preservation and Adaptive Reuse (Ted Landsmark)
- Sustainability (Walter Grondzik)
- Urban Design (George Baird)
- NAAB Procedures (as of November 27 this topic group is being formed to identify issues with the NAAB Procedures)
Opportunities for feedback on the first eight reports occurred at:
- at ACSA Fall Conferences
- at the Administrators Conference, November 1-3
- and we continue to seek member feedback through our ACSAccred blog
(2) Core Values. At its November 2006 meeting, the ACSA board began a discussion of core values that underlie architectural education. Through the next few months the board refined these values to a statement–intended for discussion–about these values. The topic groups responded to this statement in their October 2007 reports, and the ACSA board would like to continue discussion of these cross-cutting values.
Graduates of professional architecture programs should be able to:
I. Design technical and creative aspects of building projects in appropriate media
- Communicate graphically in a range of media
- Integrate knowledge of design theory and history
- Create building designs with well integrated systems
- Understand constructability
- Incorporate life safety systems
II. Lead interdisciplinary design projects ethically, collaboratively, and responsibly
- Know social, professional responsibilities
- Understand business of building
- Collaborate and negotiate with clients and consultants in design process
- Create building designs with well integrated systems
- Able to assess work quality
III. Be active stewards of the environment
- Understand people, place, context
- Integrate disparate needs of client, community, society
IV. Think and act critically
- Have a firm grounding in liberal arts
- Be broadly educated
- Have lifelong inquisitiveness
- Be able to assess evidence
Moreover, students of professional architecture programs should have the opportunity to:
V. Work in a nurturing, engaging, safe environment
(3) NAAB Resource Groups. The ACSA has nominated, at NAAB’s request, 15 people to serve on resource groups organized by NAAB. Each group will be composed of representatives from ACSA, AIA, AIAS, and NCARB, and will be charged with recommending to the NAAB key issues for discussion at the ARC. The groups are beginning their work this fall. The group areas are: The Future of Architecture Education; Regulatory Issues; Accreditation Issues; and Student Learning Criteria & Related Conditions & Procedures.
- Stan Allen, Princeton University
- George Baird, University of Toronto
- Marleen Davis, University of Tennessee-Knoxville
- Loraine Fowlow, University of Toronto
- Keelan Kaiser, Judson College
- Sabir Khan, Georgia Institute of Technology
- Ted Landsmark, Boston Architectural College
- David Leatherbarrow, University of Pennsylvania
- Marilys Nepomechie, Florida International University
- Wendy Ornelas, Kansas State University
- Carmina Sanchez, Hampton University
- Stephen Schreiber, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Ken Schwartz, University of Virginia
- Kim Tanzer, University of Florida
