Regional Globalism in the Tennessee Valley is a two-part symposium that convenes leading experts, design scholars, practitioners, and artists as part of a larger effort by the University of Tennessee College of Architecture and Design to catalyze sustained scholarship on the infrastructural and ecological conditions that underpin crosscurrents of regionalism and globalism in the Tennessee Valley. This two-part symposium is an initial event designed to launch a publication and exhibition (forthcoming in 2023) that disseminates new creative work and scholarship on the region.

Learn by Design presented by AIA Tennessee and Green Spaces is a community outreach project of the 2016 AIA Tennessee State Convention held August 24-26 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was a community engagement project intended to highlight the value of design based learning for K-12 education. Students, educators, and Architects will learn from national leaders in integrating design thinking and project based learning into the core curriculum of classrooms. Students will be inspired by engaging and challenging projects that empower them to not only learn but have a positive impact on their city in the process. Teachers will learn strategies for more creative and innovative classrooms, while making connections with design professionals from the region.

At the 2015 and 2016 Convention, newly licensed architects were congratulated and recognized among their peers with custom awards designed by Matt Jordan and produced by UT’s Fab Lab. Additionally, the Tennessee Architecture Foundation provided a complimentary registration for any newly licensed architects wanting to attend the 2015 and 2016 Convention.

Funded staff to educate state and local government officials on the value of Qualifications-based Selection of architects. 19 out of 35 government entitites contacted their RFP criteria to reflect QBS consideration.

To commemorate the life and work of Francis Mah, AIA Memphis established a traveling fellowship funding jointly by the Mah family and TRO (The Ritchie Organization). The purpose is to advance the educational experience of outstanding architectural students or intern architects selected annual on a competitive basis for travel anywhere inthe world with a $2,000 travel grant.

A collaborative project between the Center City Commision, UrbanArt Commission and AIA Memphis.  The Guide features artworks and notable buildings in Downtown Memphis in two self-guided walking tours.

On April 18, 1998, a tornado ripped through Nashville damaging Downtown and inner-city neighborhoods. East Nashville was hardest hit. In July 1999, the AIA Regional Urban Design Assistance Team addressed the community’s concerns and outlined a doable plan of action that can be implemented in phases to produce outcomes in a predictable time frame.

The TFA Grant, combined with a $5,000 grant from AIA College of Fellows, enabled AIA Memphis to produce a 12-minute video and related Teacher Guide that was distributed to over 70 schools in Memphis  and Shelby County School System.

As a part of the 30th anniversary celebration, the ETCDC used a grant to produce an exhibit and video documenting many of the projects that received assistance from the ETCDC’s programs.

The Charles Waterfield Collection of over 6,000 photographic slides resides at the Nashville Public Library in the Special Collections Dvision in the Nashville Room. The Collection, a visual history of Tennessee architecture, is a tribute to Charles Waterfield’s interest in architecture and history. Subjects range from architectural styles, buildings of note across Tennessee, to buildings lost to neglect and the wrecking ball.

AIA Memphis’ educational outreach into the local school systems was expanded through this grant to include a workshop in “Design Education” for art teachers and was included as part of the teachers’ required in-service training.

Construction administration legislation was passed in the Senate, and work continues to pass legislation inthe House. Series of networking meetings between public agencies, architects, and engineers have resulted in better public architecture. The work continues.