AIA Central Q4 – 2024 Year in Review
Posted on Dec. 31, 2024 / Quarterly Newsletter / Subscribe 0
End of Year 2024 President's Letter
Dear AIA CNJ Members and Supporters,
First of all: Happy New Year for 2025! As the 2024 President of AIA Central NJ, I’ve had the honor of serving a year marked by growth and accomplishment. The success of our section is a direct reflection of members' commitment and engagement. From your participation in our events and initiatives, you play an essential role in advancing our mission of Legacy and Uplift. Together, with the dedication of our Board, Director, Committees, Members & Sponsors, we’ve made significant strides, and it’s been my privilege to guide us forward in this journey.
As we end the year and welcome 2025, let’s take a moment to reflect on 2024 (yes, the list of highlights is long!):
- We began the year by onboarding our new Section Director, Robert Epstein, who has been positively instrumental in helping us to serve you! We launched our new sponsorship prospectus early in the year, and thanks to sponsor support, we've been able to expand our capacity to serve our members. A huge thank you to all our sponsors!
- Our first event was the AIA Central New Jersey Board Installation Dinner, featuring Special Guest Samantha DeAlmeida Roman, President of ABC NJ, who spoke on “Advocacy and Apprenticeship: Architecture, Trades, and Construction”, plus a behind-the-scenes look at the State House.
- A very exciting addition for 2024 was the first annual AIACNJ Design Awards Program. We celebrated winners and participants at the fantastic Design Awards night at the Nassau Inn in Princeton, with J. Robert Hillier, FAIA, LHD of Studio Hillier sharing his life’s experience and wisdom. It was a memorable evening, and we look forward to continuing in future years.
- The AIACNJ Member Spotlight Series was another success, allowing us to regularly share members’ stories.
We had an array of well-attended and engaging in-person events and workshops, including:
- The Woolverton Inn, was an evening of food and fellowship showcasing recent construction updates at the with a Heavy Timber educational seminar.
- The healthcare tour and presentation on the Vertical Expansion of the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset Pavilion Building.
- The Hard Hat Tour of the Main Street Flemington Development Tour & Dinner was a fully sold-out event that offered a fascinating look at construction progress and insights from the Architect of Record, Developer, and County Architect. Stay tuned for Part 2 in 2025!
- The OHM Showroom Event, with tour, Stone 101, and talk on Engineering with Stone.
- The Ironbound Farm Tour, was an uncensored and educational experience.
- The Architecture Tour of the new Hindu Temple Akshardham was awe-inspiring.
- The Grounds for Sculpture and Hunterdon Art Museum Family Event, held on Saturdays had fun interactive workshops.
- The Gateway Development and Dock Bridge Event. was a wonderful insider experience.
We also collaborated and co-hosted, bridging with others:
- AIA CNJ supported emerging professionals during Architecture Week Firm Open Houses and with the ACE in Scholarship and at the ACE Awards Dinner.
- AIA CNJ was honored to support Princeton’s Women in Construction Week at Princeton University, as well as Happy Hour at the Yankee Doodle Tap Room.
- NJ NOMA + AIACNJ collaborated on an enriching professional community event at the office of Martin A. Desapio, AIA.
- We were guests at the Healthcare Facilities Management Society of NJ, where we attended the “FGI Guidelines and NJ DCA Updates” seminar.
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The Art of Architecture Film Event was held in collaboration with the Princeton Arts Council.
In collaboration with Elina Shchervinsky and NJWIA (AIA NJ Women in Architecture), we hosted several focused sessions, including:
- “The Stop Overworking Formula for Women Architects” with Maya Sharfi.
- “Waking Up to Conscious Leadership” with Gina Joren Tesser Phelan, PCC.
- “Time Management and Work-Life Balance” with AIA CNJ’s Mugdha Chawathe, AIA, LEED AP.
In addition to our in-person events, we hosted several highly impactful educational webinars:
- “What’s New with Revit 2025” by Microsol Resources at our Annual Meeting.
- “New Jersey Residential Energy Code” with Jack Daniels.
- “Progress Through Storytelling: Small Firms Winning Approvals for Innovative Design.” with Joshua Zinder, AIA and Charles F. Bloszies
Zooming out, it has been an honor to collaborate with our State and National AIA representatives. Together, we celebrated AIA National’s achievement of 100,000+ members— a huge milestone reflecting the collective commitment to the profession. This is a hopeful sign for the future of architecture as we work to transform and elevate our profession together.
Looking forward, let's warmly welcome Tania Althoff, AIA, your incoming 2025 AIA CNJ President! Tania will bring fresh ideas and new events and programs to our section. She already has exciting things in store, some of which you can see on our events page here. Please join us in welcoming her and the 2025 Board at the 2025 Installation Dinner and Presentation by Michael Hanrahan. Also many thanks to the Executive Committee, the expanding Trustees, and every Committee Member. We are always looking to engage members, so please reach out to us if you want to get involved!
In summary, it has been an honor to serve as your 2024 President, and with your continued involvement, we look forward to supporting the profession and our community as we aim to thrive in 2025!
Kindly,
Erin Sharp-Newton, M. Arch.
2025 Past-President, AIA CNJ
2024 President, AIA CNJ
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