Please note that this Desiree V. Cooper (DVC) Memorial Scholarship Foundation is not the same as the Architects Foundation Desiree V. Cooper Memorial Fund. (Confusing… I know).
Desiree was one of my dearest friends until she tragically passed away a couple of years ago. 2021 will be the fourth year of the Desiree V. Cooper (DVC) Memorial Scholarship offering assistance to those taking the architect registration exam. It seeks to honor the life and legacy of Desiree V. Cooper by championing the things she was passionate about in her professional career and personal endeavors: providing continual service to her communities and encouraging minorities and women in the advancement of their careers in architecture. To that end, the Foundation awards Scholarships for the architectural registration exam in the following categories: The Black Women in Architecture Award, The Harrisburg Memorial Award, The DC Memorial Award, and the NOMA award (new 2021).
For more information about this scholarship: http://bwa-network.com/dvc-memorial-scholarship/ Submission responses must be received no later than 11:59pm on January 11, 2021
https://www.facebook.com/desireesvictorycrew/
Sharlita Olaleye won the 2020 DVC Black Women in Architecture award.
Tya Winn won the 2019 DVC Black Women in Architecture award. She is an advocate for affordable housing and community development in Philadelphia. Winn is the Director of Project Planning for Habitat for Humanity in Philadelphia where she serves as project manager for acquisition, design, and permitting phases of their projects. She also works on affordable housing policies with local civic organizations.
Jennifer T. Matthews won the 2019 DVC DC Memorial Award. She is an Architectural Designer at Sherlock, Smith & Adams. With six years of healthcare design experience, Jennifer has worked on projects with multiple DC Metro healthcare providers. She was awarded the 2018 Healthcare Design Magazine's Educator Honor Award for creating Array Architects' annual Mind the Gap event. Her recent outreach efforts include professional practice seminars, design studio critiques, and managing her professional development platform, Creative's XP.
Katherine Williams, AIA, NOMA, LEED AP is co-founder of DVC Memorial Scholarship. She is a licensed architect in Northern Virginia and currently a Senior Project Manager at a DC university. Katherine has written extensively about the architecture profession, diversity in the industry, and community development. She has served as editor for multiple publications and was the NOMA magazine editor from 2009-2014. She writes at katherinerw.com and is publisher/editor for archstories.com.
Nikolas Hill Assoc. AIA, NOMA, is a member of the DVC Memorial Scholarship Committee; he hails from Chicago and has been living in Baltimore since 2012. He has worked as a Project Designer/PM at an A/E firm in the DMV region for the past three years. He is currently working on multiple projects in the aviation, transit infrastructure, & municipal government sectors. He currently serves as the Programming Chair for the Baltimore NOMA chapter. He spends his free time falling asleep on TV shows with his wife, Lauren; having his four-year-old son, Nixon, tell him nonsensical "Knock, Knock" jokes; and sourcing the most glorious quince, Champagne vinegar, & lemon thyme to use in shrubs.