If we Google “What does the American Institute of Architects do? the answer is, “The AIA attempts to meet the needs and interests of the nation’s architects and the public by raising public awareness of the value of architecture and the importance of good design.” This is always a worthy endeavor that AIANN sets forth to address each year.
2023 was my second effort in participating on the Board of Directors, and my curiosity was the same as it was when I was on the Board in the 90s: “What can be done to make us a more active Chapter, emphasize the importance of good design, and bring members together to make a difference?”
In 2023 AIANN Board of Directors chose to address where we’ve been and where we’d like to go. Over recent years, isolation kept us from being active. We navigated the massive shutdown during the COVID pandemic, recalibrated our social manners to keep our distance in order to stay well, and proved that we can survive in business and in life with minimal in-person contact.
In March, we took on re-integrating. We conducted a Visioning Session emphasizing how coming back together face-to-face could help us unify. It became unanimous to reboot AIANN’s connection with each other by creating opportunities for members to rebuild camaraderie while also fostering relationships outside the Chapter to make a positive impact on the community.
With that in mind, we initiated a new meeting series titled “The Integrator,” subtitled “Searching for a Shared Vision,” which brings the decision-makers together with the design and construction industry. With only two events underway, we’ve succeeded in generating the interest and participation from our members and the local Agencies such as City of Reno, City of Sparks, and Truckee Meadows Regional Planning. A collaborative synergy is building, and through casual conversations, we are exchanging thoughts and solutions around “what’s next” for our community and how we can work together to remove obstacles in support of making our community even greater. Many thanks to all of you who have attended and joined the conversation; let’s keep that dialogue going!
Alongside having new and returning members to the Board, we also welcomed our new Managing Director, Gitte Russo. Gitte is energetic and actively participates in our goals to connect with each other and with other associate organizations. This will certainly serve us down the road in extending our reach in the community. We are urging members to help support her initiatives to connect with many events and efforts to further network and integrate architects in the community. Watch for the emails and give her a call to let her know she has your support.
TMCC’s ongoing journey toward an accredited Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture has many of our AIANN members actively involved as advisors and instructors. This program not only offers the next generation a local option to develop their careers in architecture, but it also grows the future labor force for our local firms. This is a monumental effort and AIANN is committed to supporting TMCC in achieving accreditation. Anything we can do individually will collectively go a long way to benefit the future of our architectural community.
Thank you for the opportunity to serve another term as President of our Chapter! We are on a roll, and I extend a sincere appreciation to all our Board of Directors, Committee Chairs, Volunteers and Members for everything they contributed to making 2023 a success! We want to see the momentum build and hope to hear from everyone in 2024 for ideas, feedback, and participation. If you are interested in joining the AIANN efforts as a Board member or Committee Volunteer, please contact us!
Angela Bigotti-Chavez, AIA, NCARB
