NEW PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE
COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN:
THE NASHVILLE SUMMER PROGRAM IN URBAN DESIGN

TK Davis, Associate Professor of Architecture, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville

During Summer 2012, Thomas K. Davis FAIA will, again, serve as the Nashville Summer Urban Design Program Director for the College of Architecture and Design at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.  Davis will teach nine credit hours during the first two curriculum components of the program (nine weeks). 

This past Summer 2011, the UT School of Architecture offered this inaugural urban design program based at the Nashville Civic Design Center (NCDC), to the mutual benefit and synergy of the College and the Center, as a natural extension of the decade long partnership between the two entities. 

A three-course sequence— theory, design and a practicum– over a 15-week period from May 9 through August 7 involved 14 students.  Students from the University of Tennessee were encouraged to enroll in all three sequential courses, and were prioritized for enrollment, but they could elect to take one or two of the courses alone.

Nashville’s Metro Arts Commission released a study in 2010 touting the city as a powerhouse for the creative class.  Using data from 2007-2008, the Western States Arts Federation ranked Nashville 4th in the country in overall “cultural vitality”—behind New York City, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.  Vitality was gauged by looking at the number of creative professionals (actors, writers, designers and architects among them), as well as total spending on “creative life” (support for not only the symphony and concerts, but small businesses like guitar stores).  More than 38,000 creative professionals worked in the region during the study period, and nearly $1 billion a year was spent on creative life, according to the report.

UT lecturers Gary Gaston and Stephanie McCullough will have primary faculty roles during the final component of a proposed three-part curriculum structure (six weeks) this summer.  During this final segment, T. K. Davis will provide oversight and will be at the NCDC assisting in teaching a total of four two-day visits (eight days total, including the beginning, conclusion, and two intermediate points during the six weeks).

Students may choose to live with family, friends or make their own living arrangements during the program.  Alternatively, excellent housing is available at the Scarritt-Bennett Center in the West End, at a rate of $62 per night (or less, based on duration of stay), including free parking and buffet meals by reservation on a per meal cost basis. 

Students are responsible for arranging and paying for all housing, meals, travel, parking and entry fees during the program.  The mini-term course will include an overnight field trip to Columbus, Indiana, with students responsible for their personal costs to participate.  Columbus, a four hour drive form Nashville, is one of the nation’s most concentrated centers for distinguished modern architecture and landscape design.

University of Tennessee students enrolled in the Interior Design or Landscape Architecture Programs also may apply for enrollment, subject to the advanced approval of their program’s faculty leadership.

Students enrolled in architecture programs at other universities are also welcome and encouraged to apply for enrollment.  

Inquire of the College of Architecture and Design for more information. Costs and additional information is available for viewing or download here.