MCA Portfolio Workshop
This event is open to the Maryland School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation (MAPP) Community only. Marshall Craft Associates (MCA) will join MAPP School in reviewing student work and offering insight from experienced industry professionals.
February 4, 2026
February 4, 2026
Professor Emeritus Ralph Bennett and Clinical Professor Amy Gardner Elevated to the American Institute of Architecture College of Fellows
Professor Emeritus Ralph Bennett and Clinical Professor Amy Gardner have been elected to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) College of Fellows (FAIA). Ralph and Amy are two of over 100 members elevated this year out of 80,000 AIA members. This prestigious honor recognizes their extensive contributions to the advancement of the profession through teaching and practice. Amy and Ralph will be honored this May at the AIA Annual Convention in Atlanta, Georgia.
Building Knowledge, Brick by Brick
Most students at the University of Maryland probably don’t consider what went into creating the campus’s iconic red brick buildings. But for one afternoon each fall, that afterthought becomes an assignment as fledgling architects sling mud and level rows of brick.
Alumni Profile, Valentine's Edition: Chelsie and Ryan Rattanni
Over the past 50 years, MAPP has produced its fair share of power couples. In the fall of 2016, Ryan Rattanni and Chelsie Miller were added to the roster. The two met through UMD’s Urban Studies and Planning Program, where they worked and studied alongside each other in a tight-knit cohort; sparks began to officially fly during Uri Avin’s Land Use Planning Class… possibly because Uri is known to make Barry White references during his lectures (but more likely because they worked on a project together).
Vikas Mehta (PhD 06)
He has just accepted The Terence M. Fruth/Gemini Chair of Signage Design and Community Planning and Eminent Scholar of Urban/Environmental Design position at the University of Cincinnati. The chair professorship will develop a new initiative focused on communication in the urban environment (CUE) by collaborating with planning, architecture, design, signage design, communication and other disciplines.
HISP Alum Co-Authors Genealogy Article with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. for The Root
Alumna Kristin Britanik (MHP ‘09) co-authored an article for The Root this past July with literary critic and writer Henry Louis Gates, Jr. The article, entitled “Did Africans Immigrate to Jim Crow America?” addresses a reader question about tracing the roots of her great-great-grandfather, who willingly immigrated to the United States during post-Civil War segregation, or the Jim Crow era.
The Equity Lynchpin: Why planners should re-think the role of schools
Ariel Bierbaum joined the University of Maryland’s Urban Planning Program in January 2017 after completing her Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning at the University of California, Berkeley. While a seasoned planner with over 15 years of experience in community development and public policy, Ariel turned her attention to the U.S. public education system during her time at Berkeley, after discovering through her work in participatory planning that public schools are “the lynchpin” to creating equitable, thriving communities. It’s a complex issue Ariel knows is imperative to tackle.
Dr. Willow Lung-Amam Promoted with Tenure to Associate Professor of Urban Studies and Planning
Willow Lung-Amam has been promoted with tenure to Associate Professor of Urban Studies and Planning by the University of Maryland School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. She serves as Director of Community Development with the National Center for Smart Growth (NCSG) and teaches courses in urban inequality and diversity, social planning and community development.
Madlen Simon Promoted to Full Professor of Architecture
Madlen Simon, AIA has been promoted to full professor by the University of Maryland’s Architecture Program. She currently serves as Professor and as the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Outreach for the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, where she has been teaching since 2006.As a researcher and educator, Simon focuses her work on design thinking as a methodology for innovation and entrepreneurship. She is a Distinguished Fellow of the Academy for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Alumnae Amalie ElFallah Receives Fulbright Award
Written by Dan Novak Amalie ElFallah (B.S. Architecture ’18) has been awarded the Fulbright U.S. Student Program’s two-year Laurea Magistrale in Architecture and Urban Design at the Politecnico di Milano in Italy. The program trains students in advanced architectural design and develops theoretical, humanistic and artistic competences based on the Italian tradition.