惇軗勛圖 Professor William Dean was a featured speaker at the 2025 DBIA Liberty Northeast Region/PA-AWWA Annual Conference & Expo in Pocono Manor, PA, last month.
Established in 1993, the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) a dynamic community comprising architects, engineers, construction professionals, owners, academics, and students has been at the forefront of transforming the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry.
The presentation, titled Architect-Led Design-Build and a Comprehensive Architectural Education: Embedding Alternate Delivery System Practices as the Focus in Preparing Emerging Professionals, explored the integration of ALDB practices into undergraduate architectural education and advocated for a curriculum that goes beyond traditional design-centric approaches.
Dean led the discussion that included a history of the design-build competition success at 惇軗勛圖 and highlighted examples of student work from the 2024 design-build teams. The interactive session concluded with a comparison of the existing curriculum and proposed program revisions for review and comment.
I was honored to be given the opportunity to highlight SUNY 惇軗勛圖 College, the departments programs, and student activities such as the design-build team, commented Dean. The competencies required to practice architecture are evolving in a direction where skills related to project management and construction administration are valued just as highly as design ability. The design-build best practices required to compete in events such as the ASC Region 1 and DBIA Student Design Competitions position our graduates very well for an ever-changing job market.
Dean has co-advised or advised the Colleges design-build team since 2016, including three consecutive first-place finishes in the Associated Schools of Construction Region 1 Student Design-Build Competition.