1. Promoting Research in a College of Architecture Steven P. French, Ph.D., FAICP Dean and Professor College of Architecture Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA 30332-0695 ACSP Administrators Conference Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio November 15, 2013

2. The Problem Innovation and knowledge creation are becoming more and more important in universities. Architecture and design schools do not have a strong tradition of research and often do not see themselves as having a strong research mission.

3. The Research Imperative Build interdisciplinary linkages Increase our standing in the university Support promotion and tenure Support graduate students Funding to engage interesting problems Inform our teaching

4. GT College of Architecture 5 Schools Architecture Building Construction City and Reg. Planning Industrial Design Music Technology 7 Research Centers Digital Building Lab Center for Quality Growth Center for GIS Center for Assistive Technology Alternative Media Access Center Construction Research Center Center for Music Technology 800 Students 60 Faculty, 28 Research Scientists, 35 staff $10 million state funding, $6 million sponsored research

5. Research Culture Commitment to research varies by discipline Creative Activity, Scholarship and Sponsored Research Faculty without a PhD have little research training

6. 6 This is the first urban century A majority of the world’s population lives in cities Human impact on the environment is largely mediated through urban infrastructure systems China plans to move 250 million people from the countryside into cities by 2025 Urbanization

7. Grand Challenges Energy and Climate Change Major Demographic Shifts Information Technology Revolution

8. Key Areas Green Building Energy Efficient Buildings Micro-Housing Building Information Modeling Health Care Design Assistive Technologies Aging in Place Product Design Hazard Mitigation GIS and Remote Sensing

9. Possible Strategies Incentives Mentoring Studio based Research Workshops and Seminars Research Centers

10. Incentives What do faculty want? Money Time Space Prestige

11. Mentoring Can work if - You have someone who can and will be a mentor You have someone who wants a mentor The chemistry is right

12. Studio Based Research Can support initial exploratory research Can engage potential sponsors Sometimes difficult to mix learning objectives with research mission

13. Workshops and Seminars Workshops for proposal preparation Workshops for identifying funding sources Seminars for research examples Seminars increase communication Cannot create interesting questions

14. Research Centers Provide focus on specific topics Add capacity with research staff Increase sponsored funding Provide infrastructure for proposal development Tend to have a life of their own Should involve a team of faculty

15. Conclusions This is an opportune time to increase research in architecture and design schools because New faculty are more likely to have research skills, Our disciplines address major societal issues, and Business and Engineering have discovered design thinking