Professor of the Practice and architecture alum Peter Noonan (‘88, M.Arch '92) is one of 83 individuals who has been elevated to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) College of Fellows this year. The honor is the organization's highest distinction; less than 3% of AIA members hold the designation.
Noonan, who has been an AIA member since 1994, is a principal at McInturff Architects, a highly-acclaimed design firm in the Mid-Atlantic region. He has completed over 50 residential, commercial and institutional projects that have received over 90 design awards, including two National AIA Honor Awards for the Martin-Shocket House and 1237 Wisconsin Avenue.
As an educator, Noonan has taught at the University of Maryland since 1992 where he has made significant contributions to the architecture curriculum for over three decades. His teaching focuses on building craft, sustainability, integration and sensory engagement. He has taught courses such as Comprehensive Design Studio, Topical Studios focused on housing and mass timber, and a collection of seminars including Sensing Architecture: Body and Place, and Architecture and Cinema: Place and Film. For 10 years, he led the Integrated Design Studio, and earned recognition in 2007 and 2011 during visits from the NAAB. He also received the Outstanding Professional Track Faculty Teaching Award in 2012, 2016, and 2020.
Noonan has guided his students to victory in several national design competitions, including fourth and first place wins in the Softwood Lumber Board and the Association of Coll egiate Schools of Architecture Timber in the City Competition. He has also served as the director of the Scandinavia: Culture & Place education abroad program since 2010.
“Peter Noonan has demonstrated excellence through his contributions to practice, teaching and service to the University of Maryland and beyond,” said Dr. Dawn Jourdan, dean of the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. “He is a beloved professor who is well-known for, among other things, engaging his students in experiential learning in the U.S. and abroad.”
Noonan joins an elite group of MAPP faculty and alums to hold this distinguished title. Noonan’s former student and fellow alum Catherine C. Morrison (‘04), the CEO for Neighboring Concepts, PLLC, in Charlotte, North Carolina, was also elevated this year. Ten faculty members and 32 alums have now been recognized as FAIA.