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By Lisa Ciota, Education Guide, Class of 2020

Chicago has been home to many visionary architects and engineers who not only shaped our city, but also helped shape the architecture of today’s world. Indeed, architecture is Chicago’s gift to the world.

This legacy continues today with Kimberly Dowdell, principal at HOK in Chicago and the 100^th President of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).  Dowdell represents two key firsts for an AIA President:  She’s the first Black women and first Millennial to hold the organization’s top office.

A Detroit native and graduate of Cornell and Harvard Universities, Dowdell holds several major distinctions:  She is only the 295^th Black woman to become a licensed architect (in 2013), she was named one of Crain’s 40 under 40 in both Detroit (2018) and Chicago (2020), and she is the past president (2019-2020) of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA), where under her leadership membership increased by over 35%.

Dowdell is also renowned for the design of what many consider the best and most luxurious airport in the world:  Hamad International Airport in Qatar.  Opened in 2014, the airport reflects its location near ocean and sand dunes with its rippling, wavy roofline. Inside, passengers enjoy a lofty, bright, and amenity-filled airport complex that includes a mosque, public art spaces, five-star hotels, duty-free shops, several guest lounges, a fitness center with swimming pool as well as indoor gardens.  In many ways, Hamad International re-envisions what the airport experience can be.

Indeed, envisioning new possibilities is something Dowdell has been doing since her childhood.  Her first exposure to architecture was a middle school art class assignment to design an apartment inside a shoebox.  This project opened her eyes to the power of design and led her to begin envisioning how to reactivate the Detroit buildings and neighborhoods where she lived, which in the early 1990s was a ghost of its former self.  This is what motivated Dowdell to pursue a degree in architecture.  It’s also what motivated her to pursue a Master of Public Administration from Harvard as she realized that architects are only one part of a larger team of local government officials, real estate developers, contractors, and engineers who shape the built environment.

In her new role as President of the AIA, Dowdell intends to leverage her strengths in building connections across these diverse teams as the AIA pursues its 2024 priorities – what Dowdell is calling “More in ’24,” the focus of which includes:

• More money: Meaning increasing client and public recognition of the value architects create and its importance to our lived experience.
• More members: Increasing AIA membership and its diversity.
• More mission: Building and executing a shared vision of how design excellence can foster a built environment that nurtures progress, equity, and sustainability for all.

With Dowdell at the helm, the opportunities are great, and the vision is greater.

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