The Gensler Center was created through the generosity of the Gensler Family and the Gensler firm to celebrate the life and legacy of visionary architect, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Art Gensler.

The mission of the M. Arthur Gensler Jr. Center for Design Excellence is to inspire and support design excellence in architectural education, research, and practice through the development and dissemination of innovative design methods and practices; the facilitation of collaboration across professional and academic communities; and the support and advocacy of diversity, social justice, and environmental sustainability.

April 15, 2023: “Climate as Praxis” symposium

Held to mark the launch of the M. Arthur Gensler Jr. Center for Design Excellence, “Climate as Praxis” brought together four eminent practitioners–Chris Cornelius, Billie Faircloth, Kate Orff, and Boonserm Premthada–whose work straddles the academic and professional realms and who are advancing new ways for designers to directly address the social and environmental effects of climate change.

April 15, 2023: Climate as Praxis pop-up exhibition.

The exhibition, curated by CCA faculty member Alex Schofield, highlighted student and faculty work addressing climate change and social justice. From developing new kinds of resilient infrastructure to partnering with communities affected by fire to exploring the architecture associated with resource extraction, the CCA Architecture community is actively engaged in meeting the urgency of the climate crisis.

Tuition scholarships. A total of six scholarships are awarded each year: two to undergraduate architecture students, two to Interior Design students, and two to graduate architecture students. Recipients of Gensler Scholarships also participate in a mentorship program with architects in Gensler’s San Francisco office.

• Pre-college scholarships of $4,000 each for students from diverse backgrounds to attend CCA’s pre-college program in architecture. Two scholarships are awarded each year.
• Summer Research Fellowships to support current students and/or recent alumni to work closely with CCA Architecture Faculty to advance their research in the field. One or two fellowships are awarded each year.
• Gensler Success Fellowships of $1000 each that provide hands-on/experiential learning, professional development, and networking for students from diverse backgrounds.

Since its inception the Gensler Center has generously supported the following initiatives:

• Enabled CCA Architecture students to attend the National Organization of Minority Architects Annual Conference
• Supported CCA students to attend the American Institute of Architects Student West Quad Conference
• Supported CCA students to attend the AIA National Convention
• Supported the “(UN)seeing Architectural Drawing” symposium, organized by CCA NOMAS
• Supported studios to travel to Greenville, California, as part of the school’s partnership with a community destroyed by the Dixie Fire in 2021
• Funded faculty to attend the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Annual Conference to present their research to their academic peers
• Provided support for CCA Architecture’s four Architectural Research Labs–Urban Works Agency, Architectural Ecologies Lab, Digital Craft Lab, and History Theory Experiments