OU Architecture Associate Professor Daniel Butko and his collaborators, which include Gibbs College alumnus Zachary Maggia, AIA, as well as Coreslab Structures (Oklahoma City), and Riverbank Acoustical Laboratories, were recently announced as winners in ARCHITECT Magazine’s 15th annual R+D Awards program.
The award-winning project is entitled “Acoustically Diffuse & Absorbent Lightweight Aerated Concrete” (ADALAC). According to the jurors, “The [six] winners are ‘a good representation of the fertile ground that is the architectural space and of where the industry is heading,… Even during pandemic times, interesting design and product exploration are still going on, which is a [testament] to the industry.”’
“Concrete’s porosity, durability, and moldability make the material ideal for nonstructural use,” says Butko. His research on ADALAC explores the relationship between material and geometry to utilize concrete in a different way. Currently, concrete—planar, dense, and highly reflective of sound waves—is not the material of choice for acoustical mitigation. However, along with its inherent structural and thermal properties, concrete can be quite porous, not to mention amenable to experimentation with form. To test its noise-control capabilities, Butko and his team of researchers are developing sawtooth panels made of acoustically diffuse and absorbent lightweight aerated concrete.
For more information on Butko’s project on ADALAC or to check out the other five award winners, visit ARCHITECT’s R+D Awards article.
Gibbs College of Architecture is proud to recognize Petya Stefanoff, who is pursuing her doctorate in the Planning, Design & Construction (PDC) program, has been appointed the new role of Director of Community Development for the City of Shawnee, Oklahoma. She joined the city in 2024.
Gibbs College of Architecture is pleased to announce that Amber N. Wiley, Ph.D., associate professor in the Division of Planning, Landscape Architecture and Design and director of the Institute for Quality Communities, has received national recognition for her book Model Schools in the Model City. The book has been named a finalist for the 2026 the PROSE Awards.
Gibbs College of Architecture Regional + City Planning Professor of Practice Vanessa Morrison and Associate Professor of Architecture Deborah Richards’ Open Design Collective received top honors at the inaugural BlackSpace Urbanist Collective Studio KIN Pitch Night Competition, held last month in Brooklyn, New York City.
