Deborah Richards, assistant professor of Architecture, was recognized at the 2023 American Institute of Architecture Honor Awards Celebration, held Sept. 14 at the First National Center in Oklahoma City. The AIA Oklahoma Honor Awards Program recognizes exceptional members for their distinguished leadership and commitment to the quality of life in Oklahoma.
Richards received the AIA Oklahoma Award for Community Service, which recognizes an extended commitment to community service or significant contribution evidenced in a positive impact on urban, environmental or neighborhood issues.
Richards on PBS News Hour, “How art is retelling powerful stories of Tulsa massacre, capturing community’s hopes”
Richards teaches architecture design studios as well as computational design and fabrication seminars. She is also a licensed architect in Oklahoma, and across the U.S. As an architect, she is dedicated to creating a more equitable and sustainable world through design excellence and community-led design.
Richards is the co-founder and chief design officer of Open Design Collective, a nonprofit organization that promotes social and spatial change by providing underrepresented communities with design and city planning resources. She also owns the award-winning design firm Script Architecture, PLLC, in New York City and Oklahoma City.
Richards speaking with community members for an ArtPlace America grant proposal.
Richards has shown her commitment to positive community engagement through her involvement with a variety of local organizations and projects. She was previously a board member of BlackSpace Oklahoma and has served on the Oklahoma City Downtown Design Review Committee. Some of her current projects include the Jewel Theater Stabilization and Renovation and the N.E. Oklahoma City Pre-Masterplan.
Congratulations to Richards for receiving this award!
The University of Oklahoma College of Architecture is proud to announce that Model Schools in the Model City, authored by Director of the Institute for Quality Communities, Amber N. Wiley, Ph.D., has been named one of ten finalists for the 2026 ASALH Book Prize for Best New Book in African American History and Culture.
This semester, students in the LA 5535 Studio: Ecological Planning and Design, led by Prof. Afsana Sharmin, took on an ambitious hypothetical project to redesign key parts of the OU campus. Their mission: to tackle the critical real-world challenge of stormwater management through innovative green design.
Petya Stefanoff, Chair of the Educational Committee with the American Planning Association, Oklahoma Chapter (APA-OK) and Gibbs College PhD candidate, has developed a new training program for local government officials. The program, focused on land use, zoning principles, and land development, recently certified its first graduates with Certified Citizen Planner status.
