Damaris Fernandez-Sierra
Scholar since:
2025-09-01
Scholarship received:
Jason Pettigrew Memorial ARE Scholarship
Education:
Northeastern University
Hometown:
Russell, MA
Damaris is a designer committed to using architecture as a tool for community empowerment, equity, and resilience. Her work is grounded in the belief that design can act as a catalyst for change, particularly in addressing housing justice, food access, and the creation of inclusive, culturally responsive community spaces.
Throughout her academic and professional journey, she has pursued projects that reflect these values. As an undergraduate, she participated in the Amherst Bandshell design competition, where her proposal emphasized flexibility, play, and intergenerational connection. In graduate school, she collaborated on a triple-decker housing proposal that reimagined this iconic typology through affordability, adaptability, and environmental resilience. These experiences deepened her understanding of housing as infrastructure for equity.
Today, in her career, she has worked closely with housing authorities and the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to deliver affordable public housing solutions across Greater Boston. This work centers on improving tenant wellness, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness, ensuring design serves the public good.
For Damaris, licensure is not only a professional milestone but also a pathway to leadership, mentorship, and advocacy—advancing architecture as a practice rooted in empathy, responsibility, and service.
Throughout her academic and professional journey, she has pursued projects that reflect these values. As an undergraduate, she participated in the Amherst Bandshell design competition, where her proposal emphasized flexibility, play, and intergenerational connection. In graduate school, she collaborated on a triple-decker housing proposal that reimagined this iconic typology through affordability, adaptability, and environmental resilience. These experiences deepened her understanding of housing as infrastructure for equity.
Today, in her career, she has worked closely with housing authorities and the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to deliver affordable public housing solutions across Greater Boston. This work centers on improving tenant wellness, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness, ensuring design serves the public good.
For Damaris, licensure is not only a professional milestone but also a pathway to leadership, mentorship, and advocacy—advancing architecture as a practice rooted in empathy, responsibility, and service.