University of Oklahoma Regional + City Planning Alumna Gina Sofola, who heads her own project management consulting firm in Oklahoma City, sought out RCPL to expand her reach and abilities.
“I found that I needed another addition to my education and to my skillset,” says Sofola.
“OU was a good fit for me as an adult student. It offered a very flexible schedule for me, it offered the ability to marry student life with the life of an adult and a businesswoman.”
Sofola lists the excellence of the professors and the quality of the study abroad opportunities the program offered as highlights from her experience. According to Sofola, the study abroad trip she took with the program gave her and her classmates “the opportunity to apply what we learned to tangible, real-life situations.”
Through her time in the program, Sofola says she was prepared to address problems in the real world.
“I’ve had the opportunity to see that with the way we’ve built our communities and the way we’ve built our cities in the past, some of the unintended consequences have really been detrimental to our society,” says Sofola.
“You come away understanding that the problems that exist are serious, and the solutions really matter.”
Sofola wants to use her skills and experience to impact Oklahoma City, where she grew up, and especially its African American community, “so that they can have a seat at the table and have a voice in shaping their community.”
Visit her website to learn more.
A project designed by Gibbs College of Architecture faculty member Austin Lightle has been selected for BuildFest 2026, a national art and architecture festival held at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in New York, on the historic grounds of the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival.
Two Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture alumni are helping shape recommendations that could influence affordable housing design and construction across Oklahoma.
The University of Oklahoma Libraries recently welcomed Carl Siegel as an Architecture Librarian and Archivist and Assistant Professor. In his role, Siegel supports students, faculty and staff across the Gibbs College of Architecture while also serving as archivist for the American School of Architecture Archives.
