SEPTEMBER 2021

AIA LA State Conference

In light of Hurricane Ida, early registration discounts are being extended through September 15th, when online registration closes. Do you already know you’re not going to be comfortable meeting in-person regardless of when Conference is? Maybe the Virtual Day is just for you! Are you just unsure of your schedule right now or how you feel closer to the date, but don’t want to miss the discounts? Then, the All-Access Pass is just what you need!

Registration is open; sponsorships, as well as booths (yes, there will even be an Expo!), still have a few openings! Click HERE for details on those.

See the Brochure here>>



Register here>>

Schedule:

Thursday, September 23rd: VIRTUAL DAY (all sessions will be virtual)

Friday, September 24th: IN-PERSON DAY (all sessions will be in-person at Lafayette venue)

Tickets:

• Virtual One-Day Pass: Purchase this pass/ticket if you are not comfortable meeting in-person or your schedule just won’t allow for travel.
• In-Person One-Day Pass: Purchase this pass/ticket if you only want to attend an in-person event and don’t want to attend the virtual sessions.
• All-Access Pass: Purchase this pass/ticket if you want to attend anything/everything Conference related no matter the format! You’ll be able to attend the Thursday sessions wherever you are…even if you want to come to the Conference venue and join the group viewing! You’ll also be able to attend the Friday in-person sessions as well.

Bonus for New Members: Join the American Institute of Architects (AIA) now through August 29th, and receive a FREE All-Access Pass (excludes Special Events programs) to the AIA LA ’21 Conference on Architecture, September 23-24, 2021 at the Hilton DoubleTree, in Lafayette, LA. Take advantage of this offer now, by requesting your membership application direct from AIA LA Office.

Honor Awards: 

• There will be no boards to submit for projects again this year. Details are being worked on for digital displays, so keep an eye out for that.
• There will be an Awards Dinner (rather than previous “luncheon”) this year on Friday, September 24th at the Hilton Doubletree in Lafayette (the Friday evening of Conference at the conference venue).

Hurricane Ida

For members that were in the path of Hurricane Ida, please touch base with us or your local chapter/section and let us know how you are.

AIA Baton Rouge Chapter

AIA Coastal Section

AIA New Orleans Chapter

SAP Trained Individuals: Please check your email inboxes for the latest information.

AIA Louisiana will be assisting with state entities as well as local chapters/sections to assess needs and offer support where possible. As a member, please be on the lookout for how you can assist your fellow colleagues. 

Calling all AIA LA Members!

Join us for the 2021 AIA LA Annual Meeting:

Friday, September 24th 1:30PM-2:30PM

Vermillion Ballroom

Hilton DoubleTree – Lafayette

You do NOT have to be registered/attending the Conference events to attend that Annual Meeting. All members are welcome to come to just this meeting even if they are not registered for Conference.

Members Choice

Reminder to current AIA and Associate AIA Members: 

Don’t Forget to Vote!

If you have already voted and received confirmation of voting, please disregard this.

We are so excited to open the 2021 Honor Awards Members’ Choice Voting! 

• Click this link to view the Honor Awards page with all of the entries available for viewing.
• Play Juror!.... Review the projects between now and Wednesday, September 15th when voting closes and cast your vote(s) on your ballot.
• REMEMBER: Do NOT vote for a project that your firm worked on! Your vote will be disqualified.
• Your ballot is attached to this email and available on the website. Fill that out.*
• Email your completed ballot to inquiries@aiala.com using the subject line “Members Choice”

*Only current Louisiana AIA members and Associates AIA members (those pursuing architectural licensure) are eligible to vote. Affiliate and Allied members are not included in this election.

The winner will be announced during the 2021 Honor Awards Program at the AIA Louisiana Conference on Architecture in Lafayette, September 24th from 7:00 – 9:00 pm.

VIEW & VOTE NOW!

Mini Film Festival / Movie Night: Screening of two short documentaries about long-term strategies for housing. Films will be followed by a panel discussion on how can cities become better homes for all and what role architects can have in addressing homelessness.

Movies:

"What it Takes to Make a Home"

"MidTown, A Blueprint for Better"

This event will be held in conjunction with the 2021 Annual AIA Louisiana Conference. Tickets can be added when registering for the conference or purchased separately here. It is open to the public. Movie Night ticket purchase includes one drink ticket and light refreshments with cash bar.

AIA LOUISIANA ELECTION

OF OFFICERS FOR 2022

Nominations as of September 3, 2021

Election will be held during the AIA Louisiana Annual Business Meeting

Friday, September 24, 2021, 1:30 p.m., DoubleTree by Hilton Lafayette (Vermilion Ballroom)

President-Elect Mischa Farrell, AIA

will be the 2022 AIA Louisiana President

I look forward to serving AIA Louisiana as President in 2022. For those of you that may not be familiar with me, I am the principal of Mischa Farrell Architect, LLC, founded in 2000. I’ve been practicing architecture in Louisiana for the last 24 years, formerly having lived in New Mexico while working for Antoine Predock. I studied Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin with additional architectural studies at the Danish Institute for Study Abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Since 2012, I have actively participated as an officer of AIA at both the local and state levels and have been a Board member of the Louisiana Architecture Foundation for the last five years. I passionately advocate for Louisiana Architects and Architecture and am enthusiastic to assist our more than 1,100 AIA Louisiana members by helping to implement our 2022-2024 Strategic Plan through Public Awareness, Sharing Knowledge, Government Advocacy, Operational Efficiency, and Member Value. I am eager to build on our successful leadership and am excited about our journey ahead.

FOR THE OFFICE OF

 PRESIDENT-ELECT

The nominee elected to this office will become President of AIA Louisiana in 2023

FRITZ EMBAUGH, AIA

CEO and Director of Operations for PlusOne Design | Construction, Fritz Embaugh is a Licensed Architect and General Contractor living in Baton Rouge, LA. Prior to starting PlusOne in 2005, Fritz enjoyed a vast and varied career in the architecture and construction worlds. With experience that ranged from construction management to municipal business development, Fritz learned the building industry from a multitude of perspectives, solidifying his love for both architecture and construction. As a National AIA Award winning firm, Fritz and the PlusOne team leverage both areas of expertise to create smart, responsive design, while simultaneously ensuring it translates completely into the built form.

A graduate of the USMC School of Infantry, Embaugh is a decorated Gulf War Veteran. He graduated in the top 5 percent from Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton and has received several letters of commendation, meritorious promotions as well as campaign service awards.

Fritz has been an active member in AIA Baton Rouge since 2015, and a board member since 2017, including President in 2020. Fritz represented AIA BR on the Planning Committee for LSU’s Inland for the Coast federal grant in response to the flooding of 2016, as well as serving as the Louisiana Architecture Selection Board Chair in 2016-2017. Additionally, Embaugh served on the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board Architect Selection Board in 2017-2018.

Perhaps most proudly through, Fritz is starting his 14th year as a Boy Scout volunteer. Having served in a multitude of capacities, he is currently serving a dual role as both the elementary school Pack Leader and high school Eagle Project Leader.

Fritz, and his lovely wife Tia, have two children and two dogs and – as one would expect from an architect/contractor Dad/husband – have lived happily in a construction zone for 19 years.

Candidate Statement

As AIA Louisiana Vice President/President-Elect, my desire will be to serve both the state of Louisiana and the Profession of Architecture by focusing on two overarching goals:

Elevate the awareness and reputation of the profession through public awareness, legislative engagement and community involvement to help expand the need for, and influence of, architects.

Advance the charge to address those most affected by the ravaging effects of flooding, hurricanes and coastal erosion and the important role that architects can serve in this effort.

My hope is to bring the disparate parties required to conceive of and create the vision to move our state forward. Some of the greatest challenges we face as a state can be directly addressed, and subsequently impacted, by the skills of our profession. Utilizing our intellectual capital and hard-won experience, I believe can create a forum from which research and creative thought can coalesce to influence policy and help create systematic change to address and mitigate threats to our built environment. As Louisiana architects, it is incumbent upon us to work together to create more resilient and sustainable communities for our citizens.

As AIA Louisiana Vice President/President-Elect, I would be honored to lead our membership, and our profession, to make the type of indelible mark that only a group of architects could make.

Have you made your PAC donation yet this year?!

Have you seen your local chapter/section information regarding the on-going friendly challenge/competition? There’s an award for the highest total donation from one chapter/section as well as the highest per-capita donation! Have you done your part to bring your own across the finish line?!

DONATE HERE

NEW MEMBER BENEFIT FOR AIA LOUISIANA MEMBERS!!!



The Associates and Emerging Professionals Committee has been meeting with the mission to create opportunities to aid in and increase the member value for architectural ASSOCIATE members, those recently licensed, and ALL AIA Louisiana members. OverDrive digital library is a custom digital collection of eBooks that is now open to members across the state 24/7, currently with 27 eBooks, and allows you, our members to borrow digital content anytime, anywhere…ALL FREE OF CHARGE TO CURRENT AIA LOUISIANA MEMBERS. 

The digital library not only contains important books of interest to Associate AIA members who are pursuing their license with NCARB recommended study/resource materials, as well as a number of eBooks of interest to licensed architects, and in the near future, architectural self-published and scholarly work, in addition to magazines, eBooks, etc., that are of interest to seasoned architects.

Start taking advantage of your added member benefit today. 

Go to https://aialouisiana.overdrive.com, log in with your AIA membership number (card number section), sign in and borrow the book of your choice! The link can also be found on our website, www.aiala.com, “Education,” “AIA Louisiana Digital Library.”

Elite Sponsors

September

15 Conference Online Registration Closes

23 Board Meeting

23/24 State Conference on Architecture

October

26 Codes Workshop

December

2 Executive Planning Session