Gibbs College PhD student Felipe Flores recently won the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS) Excellence in Teaching Award. MAGS is an organization of colleges and universities that works to advance graduate studies by improving program standards, sharing information, and encouraging research.
The MAGS award recognizes outstanding student teachers and mentors and emphasizes their importance in improving graduate education. One doctoral student and one master’s student were awarded with a citation and a $750 honorarium at the 79th Annual MAGS meeting on March 29-31, 2023, in Chicago, Illinois.
Flores was honored with this award for his dedication to architecture and planning education. He strives to make this discipline more inclusive of non-Western viewpoints by creating a more diverse and inclusive educational environment for emerging architects. Ever since he joined as a doctoral student in the Fall of 2021, Flores has engaged with undergraduate students, organized events that serve our student community, and explored new learning opportunities to improve his instructional techniques.
His dedication to teaching excellence has made a positive impact on many students across Gibbs college. Student Sabrina Feist reflected on her time with Flores, “[Felipe] respected my ideas and guided me to a precedent that taught me how to capitalize on what I loved while staying true to the project and practice. He was excited and ready to show me how to use my own interests in my work.”
Another student, Benjamin Jawad, said “Successful teachers can recognize and push their students to reach their potential, even when they are unaware of it. Due to Felipe’s commitment to guiding his students to reach their full potential and providing them with valuable growth opportunities, I believe he has provided me with the best academic experience possible through the Gibbs College of Architecture.”
Below are some of the teaching and mentoring opportunities Flores has actively engaged in during his time at Gibbs:
Congratulations to Felipe Flores for receiving this well-deserved award!
Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture assistant professor Amy Leveno and Mark Leveno, co-founders of OFFICIAL Design, have received a 2026 AIA Central States Region Design Award for the firm’s Granger Annex Community Center project in Garland, Texas.
Construction Industry Speaker Series welcomed Stephen Evans from the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum to give a lecture on better conversations and relationship building.
The University of Oklahoma Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture Hall of Fame recognizes a select number of high-character individuals who have made a significant and lasting positive impact on Gibbs College, its students, staff, faculty, alumni and/or to communities across the globe. The impact may have been, or continues to be, in the form of service and mentorship, sustained professional excellence, and/or advancement and financial support. Joseph Edgar Smay is part of the 2025 Hall of Fame class.
