Research Prize

The SOM Foundation Research Prize comprises two $40,000 grants that are designed to cultivate new ideas and meaningful research that address the critical issues of our time. The SOM Research Prize is awarded to faculty-led interdisciplinary teams that address a topic identified on an annual basis by the Foundation Board. The SOM Research Prize is an evolution of the former SOM Prize and SOM Travel Fellowship programs.

The SOM Foundation Research Prize is open to applicants currently teaching at US schools with accredited Bachelor, Master, or PhD degree programs in Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Design, or Urban Design. Applications must include a faculty member who will lead an advanced level studio course as a part of the research. The principal investigator(s) will be expected to work in a collaborative manner with faculty or leading professionals from other disciplines and students to pursue a research question inspired by the SOM Foundation Topic. The SOM Foundation Research Prize is intended to support new and ongoing research by faculty and students with the goal of providing conclusive findings about the topic at hand.

Application Opens in September 2021

2020

Reclaiming Black Settlements: A Design Playbook for Historic Communities in the Shadow of Sprawl

Historic Black settlements in urban contexts across the United States are subjected to environmental and industrial hazards that jeopardize their health and survival. This project will bring together faculty and students in architecture, landscape architecture, planning, policy, and historic preservation to develop a design playbook particular to the needs of historic Black settlements in Dallas-Forth Worth that are exposed to risks of top-down development in the wake of explosive urban development and sprawl.

Diane Jones Allen
University of Texas at Arlington Program of Landscape Architecture

Austin Allen
University of Texas at Arlington School of Architecture

Kathryn Holliday
University of Texas at Arlington School of Architecture

Somf 2020 research prize lin molix welty proposal 02

Somf 2020 research prize lin molix welty proposal 03

Public Space and Scrutiny: Examining Urban Monuments through Social Psychology

“Public Space and Scrutiny” proposes a study of existing public spaces, monuments, and memorials through the lens of social psychology in order to establish a broader frame of reference for future design. It aims to examine strategies to bridge the gap between the architects and the general public, specifically when designing for urban spaces marked by racial injustice.

Tiffany Lin
Tulane University School of Architecture

Lisa Molix
Tulane University Department of Psychology

Emilie Taylor Welty
Tulane University School of Architecture