Dr. Francesco Cianfarani, assistant professor of architecture at the OU Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture, is part of the 2025 cohort for the Academy for Public Scholarship on the Built Environment. The theme of this year’s cohort is housing equity. The program offers participants coaching on how to extend their scholarship beyond academics and influence both conversation and policies in housing.
Dr. Cianfarani’s research encompasses elements of architecture and urban design, with an emphasis on housing. He has investigated housing through field research, mapping, design proposals, and critical studies. His research include infill initiatives in Oklahoma City and the development of a housing database to identify gaps in affordable housing, produced for the Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency.
For more information about the program, view the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture press release.
Robert L. Wesley, a pioneering architect and beloved mentor, has died at age 88. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Wesley joined Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) in 1964 and became the firm's first Black partner in 1984. Throughout his career, he contributed to significant architectural projects while maintaining a strong commitment to civic engagement and professional mentorship.
The Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture is proud to celebrate a series of recent accomplishments by Dr. Jim Collard, Professor of Practice in the Division of Planning, Landscape Architecture, and Design, whose work continues to shape conversations around Indigenous economic development nationally and internationally.
University of Oklahoma Gibbs College of Architecture Dean Hans E. [PA1.1]Butzer returned to one of his most significant works on December 15, joining survivors and past and present board members for the groundbreaking of a $15.8 million expansion of the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum.
