WASHINGTON, Aug. 11, 2025 – The Architects Foundation (AF) is delighted to announce civil engineer Taryn N. Williams as the 2025 Fellow of the Richard Morris Hunt Prize (RMHP). As the philanthropic partner of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), AF annually joins with the French Heritage Society (FHS) and Les Amis du Richard Morris Hunt Prize to award one of the preservation field’s most distinguished fellowships.
An associate principal at Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (SGH), Williams will spend six months in France studying building envelopes and their preservation. Her research exploring French preservation approaches will potentially yield insights applicable to American practices that contribute to international heritage conservation standards.
Williams shared, “I’m deeply honored to be selected by the AIA and the Architects Foundation to receive the Richard Morris Hunt Prize. This fellowship is an exciting opportunity to broaden my technical knowledge of historic preservation alongside French professionals and to share what I learn as widely as I can.”
“Taryn Williams exemplifies the vision behind the Richard Morris Hunt Prize—bridging cultures and generations to preserve our architectural legacy,” said Jennifer Calvert, AF Executive Director. “Her expertise in building envelopes addresses preservation’s most pressing challenge of maintaining historic integrity while meeting climate demands, and her fellowship will undoubtedly advance both French and American approaches to heritage conservation”
About the Richard Morris Hunt Prize
Named for the first American architect to graduate from the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, Richard Morris Hunt (1827-1895), the Prize was established in 1990 and permits a French-American exchange of architects specializing in historic preservation. A French-American jury convenes each year to award the RMHP alternatively to an American or French architect committed to the preservation of patrimony, historic or contemporary. The architect is chosen for the excellence of his/her credentials, his/her leadership ability, and his/her research project’s potential for development. A six-month trip takes place alternatively in America or France.
About the Architects Foundation The Architects Foundation leads philanthropic efforts to inspire and empower the next generation of designers and the communities they serve. From our home at The Octagon, we demonstrate the cultural and societal impact of architecture and architects’ potential to create a just society; we invest in the next generation of the profession through our seven scholarship programs; and utilize design thinking to help communities solve critical challenges through our Communities by Design (CxD) program.
WASHINGTON – The Architects Foundation today announced the recipients for five of its scholarship programs that support future leaders of the profession in equity, diversity, and sustainability.
The Architects Foundation is continuing to support the future of the architecture profession by recognizing and supporting scholars through an ever-expanding scholarship and grant program offering. Programs listed below represent the latest recipients of the Architects Foundation’s scholarship and grant programs.
2023 Diversity Advancement Scholarship
The Architects Foundation is continuing to support diversity in the architecture profession by awarding its Diversity Advancement Scholarship to 3 students entering architecture school. Each of the students will receive $4,000 per year towards tuition for the next five years totaling $20,000 each. This year’s recipients are:
• Sherwin-Williams Scholar Justin Chappell, a freshman at Florida A&M University.
• Fireclay Tile Scholar Gabriella Doe, a sophomore at University of Notre Dame.
• RS&H Scholar Silvia Kim, a freshman at Carnegie Mellon University.
2023 Payette Sho-Ping Chin Memorial Academic Scholarship
The Architects Foundation is awarding the 2023 Payette Sho-Ping Chin Memorial Academic Scholarship to Michelle Ovanessians.
2023 Yann Weymouth Graduate Scholarship
The Architects Foundation is awarding the 2023 Yann Weymouth Graduate Scholarship to Alec Harrigan.
2023 Jason Pettigrew Memorial ARE Scholarship
The Architects Foundation is awarding the 2023 Jason Pettigrew Memorial ARE Scholarship to 10 emerging professionals to defray the costs associated with the Architect Registration Examination (ARE). Scholarship recipients will receive funds to cover the cost of the ARE, as well as $500 for study materials to prepare for testing. This year’s recipients are:
• Fallon Barrett
• Calvin Gallion
• Nancy De La Vega
• Jason Hegenauer
• Brittany Leneave
• Taisa Peree-Sehic
• Oswaldo Rivera-Ortiz
• Caroline Sorge
• Maddison Wells
• Ruichen Xu
This year, we had an extraordinary number of exceptional applicants to the Jason Pettigrew Memorial ARE Scholarship. Thanks to Tiffany Brown, Assoc. AIA, NOMA, 400FORWARD will fund the exam costs for an additional three applicants, expanding the reach and impact of this program and encouraging these emerging professionals at a pivotal point in their career. The applicants supported by 400FORWARD are:
• Darius Mathius
• Dezha McKoy-Overton
• Stephanie White
2023 Student Loan Relief Grant
The Architects Foundation is awarding the inaugural Student Loan Relief Grant to provide $5,000 of support to architecture graduates who are struggling with student debt. This year’s recipients are:
• Jasmyn Byrd
• Joshua Foster