Mission

 Mission Statement - Department of Architecture Academic Plan 

As a professional program in architecture, the mission of this department is to advocate for the broader purposes of architecture, including its public significance, its role in creating sustainable environments, and its provision of service to society through graduates who are responsible professionals, motivated by a sense of civic engagement.

1. Interdisciplinary Collaboration and Community Engagement at the upper division of the program to enable a diverse collection of funded multidisciplinary experiences for all CPPARC students in courses that leverage the culturally diverse context of Southern California. Through this endeavor, students will have opportunities to explore a variety of career options and subject areas through upper-division Professional Electives and Topic Studios. In addition to the existing supported activities in Healthcare Design, Education Facility Design, Precast Concrete, Narrative Environment Design, and Housing, the Department will identify support for Hospitality Design, Transit Oriented Development, Suburban Transformation, Autonomous Vehicle Infrastructure, Building Skin Design, Mass Timber Construction, or others as appropriate. Sustainable and Inclusive practices will be part and parcel to all upper division courses. All students will have a multidisciplinary upper-division experience building upon past Department relationships with the Departments of Landscape Architecture, Engineering, Theater, Hospitality Management, and other departments as appropriate

2. Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity will continue to define what architecture is and may become. The diverse and socially dynamic setting of CPPARC studio and activity courses provide a context for establishing significant leadership and collaboration skills in a diverse and inclusive setting.  Differences are interesting and offer design learning opportunities.  In response to the diverse composition of the student body and broad collection of unique backgrounds and needs, the Department will continue to seek institutional support to facilitate access to the greater catalog of architectural design and design thought, and to recruit faculty that reflects the diversity of the student body. This goal should continue to be ensured given the university and college visions and goals.

3. Experiential Learning through the development of real project opportunities, in parallel with the development of discipline relevant student learning environments and resources, essential for learn-by-doing utilization of design tools, technologies, and methods. Learn-by-doing promotes immediate job placement without limiting professional growth, and ensures students access to a variety of ever-evolving career trajectories of the architecturally educated. This goal should continue to be ensured with the department’s alumni advisory board, the Terian Fund and the cultivation of additional donor support. 

4. Academic Excellence, Research, Professional and Creative Activity pursued through the activities of Topic Studio and Professional Electives at the upper division, afford students access to a broad spectrum of knowledge areas and career options. Upper division courses are an ideal vehicle for supporting the CPP Teacher-Scholar Model, where faculty and students engage in design research with other disciplines and community stakeholders. In this setting, design ideas and methods can be originated, tested, developed, and documented in a form that can be disseminated to recognize the work of students and faculty and promote CPPARC. This goal should continue to be ensured with the Terian Fund and the cultivation of additional donor support. 

5. Prioritize Responsibility Towards People and the Environment pursued through courses that promote sustainable design in response to climate change, design of healthy communities, and universal / accessible design. These values are active at all year levels, they are introduced in the core of the program (in the first, second, and third years of the undergraduate and first and second years of the graduate program), and synthesized in upper division topic studios, Senior Project, and Thesis.

6. Promote a Culture of Reflection and Self-Assessment with the new NAAB conditions, to establish a comprehensive culture of self-reflection, that prioritizes fiscal and human resources through a self-assessment program responsive to evolving social issues, environmental stewardship, the evolving professional landscape of architectural practice, and the corresponding development of department curriculum and program development.