Architecture

��Ƶ School of Architecture celebrates 50-year milestone

cem123 — Wed, 06 Sep 2023 20:30:21 +0000

��Ƶ School of Architecture celebrates 50-year milestone cem123 Wednesday, September 6, 2023 - 3:30 pm

Tanner Guerrero

cem123 — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 14:06:57 +0000

Tanner Guerrero cem123 Monday, July 21, 2025 - 9:06 am 2025

Why did you choose CAADat��Ƶ?

I chose CAAD at ��Ƶ because of the community. A strong community in a studio environment was really important to me. Everyone at CAAD at ��Ƶ, from staff to students, makes you feel welcomed and a part of a larger family.

Favorite spot on campus?

As someone who enjoys being active, my favorite place is the Sanderson Center. It is where I go to take a break from school.

If you could go back and tell your high school self one thing, what would it be?

It is not going to be easy, but it will not be too hard. Give everything your all and strive to love the things you do.

These are a few of my favorite things ….

I enjoy going to the gym, sports, fishing, being outdoors, and concerts.

Architecture

2026

Stephen Allen

cem123 — Fri, 18 Jul 2025 19:05:37 +0000

Stephen Allen cem123 Friday, July 18, 2025 - 2:05 pm Alumni

After graduating from the School of Architecture in 1996, Stephen Allen worked for a time in Mississippi before joining Williams Blackstock Architects in Birmingham, Alabama. He became a partner in 2010 and president of the firm in 2022. With extensive experience in higher education, commercial, residential and civic and urban planning work, Stephen has elevated the firm’s profile by leading the production of thoughtful, contemporary design solutions for clients and their communities. Serving as a member of the ��Ƶ School of Architecture Advisory Board is only one of the ways in which he gives back while moving the profession forward.

As the speaker at Recognition Day 2025, Stephen shared memorable insights, including that design matters; listening is a design tool; and continuing to learn, ask questions and draw are critical items of a graduate’s to-do list.

“I am honored to have gained unique perspective at the School of Architecture at Mississippi State University. It has affected my life and career approach in positive and profound ways,” said Stephen. “I hope throughout your career, wherever it takes you, that you can celebrate how you have been taught to view the world, and by all means, make it your own and make it meaningful to you. The places and communities you will work in need people focused on design. There is enormous value in what you have learned, and what you will continue to learn. I truly believe the unique lens of design that you see the world through is your secret weapon—your superpower. It is needed in the world, and we all look forward to seeing how each of you use your superpower.”

Architecture

Dr. Michael Fazio (in memoriam)

cem123 — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 14:06:16 +0000

Dr. Michael Fazio (in memoriam) cem123 Monday, July 14, 2025 - 9:06 am

Professor Emeritus

Major

Architecture

Nomfazio

School of Architecture

Emeritus Faculty

Robert Craycroft

cem123 — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 14:05:12 +0000

Robert Craycroft cem123 Monday, July 14, 2025 - 9:05 am

Professor Emeritus

Major

Architecture

Yesrcraycroft

School of Architecture

Emeritus Faculty

Dr. Rachel McCann

cem123 — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 14:04:19 +0000

Dr. Rachel McCann cem123 Monday, July 14, 2025 - 9:04 am

Professor Emeritus

Major

Architecture

Normccann

School of Architecture

Emeritus Faculty

Joan Blanton

cem123 — Fri, 11 Jul 2025 19:56:29 +0000

Joan Blanton cem123 Friday, July 11, 2025 - 2:56 pm

Lecturer

jfb246@msstate.edu601-354-6480

Major

Architecture

Nojfb246

School of Architecture

Michael A Berk

cem123 — Fri, 11 Jul 2025 19:02:36 +0000

Michael A Berk cem123 Friday, July 11, 2025 - 2:02 pm

Emeritus Director and Professor

mberk@caad.msstate.edu

Michael A. Berk, AIA, is the former director (2009-2019) of the School of Architecture at Mississippi State University and former faculty member (29 years) where he held the F.L. Crane Endowed Professorship. In 2019 Berk was named director emeritus and professor emeritus by the ��Ƶ Provost’s Office and currently maintains an office in the Carl Small Town Center at the ��Ƶ School of Architecture. Berk was recently nominated and appointed to the Gulf Scholars Program in the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine (in 2021; and reappointed in 2025). He is a registered architect (California & Florida) with an extensive practice as a design partner prior to his academic career. Berk taught and researched in the areas of digital media + information design and factory-built housing (GreenMobile®). He is considered by many to be a leading expert in ecological design and planning and is often invited nationally to lecture on this topic. Past invitations include the U.S. Oak Ridge Nat’l Laboratory at Oak Ridge; the Hearst Lecture Series at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo; Auburn’s Rural Studio Lecture Series; the Texas A+M College of Architecture; and the National Building Museum in the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s “Building in the 21st Century” Lecture Series.

Under Berk’s guidance (1992) ��Ƶ was the first professional architecture program to require its students to purchase laptop computers for use in the design studios (thus abandoning the computer lab), forever changing the paradigm of architectural education. This ‘Digital Nomads’ initiative brought significant attention to the program and was cited in the seminal Carnegie Foundation ‘Boyer Report’ as a future model for architectural education. Berk was named Emeritus Chair (2025) for the Mississippi Chapter of the Sierra Club, having served in that position from 2006 to 2023.

In spring 2014, Berk received the University of Florida ‘Distinguished Architecture Alumni Award’. Berk has been responsible (as P.I. or Co-P.I.) for over $7 million in funded research at ��Ƶ and the state of Mississippi. His most significant project with the Carl Small Town Center (including USDA, HUD, DOE and FEMA funding) involved the design and manufacture of the ecologically-minded, low-cost, pre-fab GreenMobile® home unit for the Southeast and the Delta regions. In 2006, the GreenMobile® was awarded $5.8 million by FEMA and ranked No.1 (by HUD) in the Alternative Housing Pilot Program (AHHP) for post-Katrina disaster-relief housing on the Gulf Coast. This same project was also awarded FIRST PLACE in the 2007 US EPA + AIA sponsored Life Cycle Building Challenge Competition in the Professional: Unbuilt category.

Over the years Berk received numerous awards for his teaching and research at ��Ƶ. At the national level (2005), Berk’s ‘Passive Systems’ lecture course on ‘ecological design’ was awarded ‘special recognition’ by the American Institute of Architects Eco-Literacy in Education Program.

Education: