WASHINGTON – Howard University architecture professor Bradford Grant  was recently chosen to receive the 2021 Distinguished Professor Award from the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA). The prestigious award honors architectural educators for exemplary work in the academic discipline.  

"I am delighted to join the ranks of my architecture education colleagues with this award and to be the first at Howard ​University to receive this honor,” Grant said.  “It is energizing to be recognized by your peers for the innovative work, service and teaching done over the years."

Over the course of his expansive 38-year academic career, Grant has been a tireless advocate and activist for both marginalized communities and the architecture academy. A native of the California Bay area, Grant began his teaching career in 1983. He joined Howard University’s architecture program in 2007.

Grant is well-known for providing outstanding leadership in a range of roles at Howard University. His mentoring, educational development, support and leadership have led to advancements in inclusion and equity in architecture education, especially at historically Black colleges and universities. He is currently collaborating with colleagues at the Miami University of Ohio, Hampton University, Florida Agriculture and Mechanical University and with the National Organization of Minority Architects.

Grant has served as past president of the ACSA, Humanities DC as well as the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. He is currently president of the board of the Healthy Building Network and is the co-founder of the Directory of African American Architects – the first comprehensive survey, analysis and report on the numbers and role of African-American architects.

Grant’s leadership of Howard University’s first-year design studios and other student-centered activities has been a useful platform for his support and advocacy for students and junior faculty. The research he has led for the Carnegie Community Impact Health Disparity Research Grant and the ACSA/Howard Haiti Ideas Challenge have helped advance architecture education.

Grant is the inaugural Instagram artist in residence at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. His work probes the intersection of social justice, climate change, race and architecture, planning and community design, environmental justice, and universal design.

For more information, read the ACSA press release.

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About Howard University

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue more than 140 programs of study leading to undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees. The University operates with a commitment to Excellence in Truth and Service and has produced one Schwarzman Scholar, three Marshall Scholars, four Rhodes Scholars, 11 Truman Scholars, 25 Pickering Fellows, and more than 165 Fulbright recipients. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, visit www.howard.edu.

Media contact: Sholnn Freeman, Howard University Communications, sholnn.freeman@howard.edu