Fifth year Architecture students recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to present their project redesigning the Oklahoma City jail to the State Department Diplomacy Lab.
The special topics studio is led by Prof. Marjorie Callahan and Dr. Keith Gaddie. The seventeen students have spent the semester developing a new design for the Oklahoma City jail. This design is based around the idea of rethinking incarceration, focusing less on punishment and more on rehabilitation.
In the American Institute for Architects (AIA) Headquarters, the students presented their ideas to the State Department. Their project was broken up into five main components in order to present their design: Master Plan, Cottage Design, Exterior Spaces, Gathering, and Jail Tech.
The students also spent their time in DC examining the different aspects of architecture found in the city. They visited several important sites such as the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The students were also able to meet with the DC Sooner Club, an alumni group in the area. This trip not only gave the students the opportunity to share their work; it also gave them the opportunity to learn more about the architecture of DC and network with past graduates.
The presentations to the State Department were just the first step in sharing their designs. The team will also have an exhibition at the MAINSITE Contemporary Art Gallery in Norman. You can view their exhibition in person at MAINSITE December 2nd – 6th from 10am-4pm!
Students will also be creating digital models for the ARCHITECT magazine’s Studio Prize competition.
Telesis, a journal produced by students in the University of Oklahoma Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture, has earned first place in the 2026 Douglas Haskell Award for Student Journals for its seventh volume, “Unfold.” This marks the fourth time the publication has earned recognition for excellence in student architectural journalism. It shares the honor with student journals from Columbia University, University of Michigan, and Cal Poly.
Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture congratulates Thinh "Henry" Duong, a master's student in the Division of Interior Design, for earning first place in the 2026 Robert Bruce Thompson Annual Student Light Fixture Design Competition.
Gibbs College of Architecture Institute for Quality Communities (IQC) Director and Division of Planning, Landscape Architecture, and Design (PLAD) faculty member Amber N. Wiley, Ph.D., recently published a new book, Collective Yearning: Black Women Artists from the Zimmerli Art Museum.
