SPRING 2020
Dean's Message

CAUS COMES TOGETHER
Dean Richard Blythe welcomes you to the spring 2020 edition of CAUS+effect. Read more >
Features

A new meaning of “home” for Hokies
CAUS students are leading the design on key areas of the Creativity and Innovation District residence halls. When the buildings open for residents in the fall of 2021, student designs will come to life in three areas: the student lounge, faculty apartment, and makerspace. Read more >

FORGING A PATH FORWARD
A+D academic advisor Vern Ferguson’s commitment to guiding students has always been appreciated, even under normal circumstances. But his efforts have become all the more important in the wake of COVID-19. Read more >

CAUS Responds to COVID-19
Faculty, students, and alumni are adjusting to a new normal as a result of COVID-19. Life may look different these days, but one thing hasn’t changed: the incredible creativity, ingenuity, and dedication of our CAUS family. Read more >
Around the College

School of Architecture + Design
Crafting a Career in Chicago
Since 2002, the midwestern metropolis with a storied history in American design has housed a program where students experience the real challenges of professional practice in a complex urban setting.

Myers-Lawson School of Construction
Highlighting Human-Centric Design
Building construction teams up with a prominent Christiansburg organization that welcomes and provides classes for students to learn about sustainable and affordable housing.

School of Public and International Affairs
Planning Through a Pandemic
In response to COVID-19, a local government finance expert is connecting counties, cities, and towns to valuable planning resources – and each other.

School of Visual Arts
Festival Connections
Since 2016, creative technologies students have participated in the New Orleans Film Festival. Last fall, a group of students also had an opportunity to debut one of their films in a world premiere.
Spotlights

STUDENT: Sydney Miller
Interior design student Sydney Miller has been named the 2020 Outstanding Senior for the College of Architecture and Urban Studies. Read more >

FACULTY: C.L. Bohannon
The landscape architecture professor empowers leadership through an inclusive approach to design and engagement. Read more >

ALUMNI: Archie Lee Coates IV and Jeff Franklin
Two creative alumni form a close partnership and blaze a Beyond Boundaries path to success. Read more >

DONOR: Bob Wells
A building construction alum’s legacy of engagement centers on industry connections and service learning. Read more >
Take Note
Check out our faculty’s latest career achievements in scholarship as well as the recognition they’ve received for their teaching, research, and outreach efforts. Learn more about recent faculty book publications as well as national and international faculty awards.
Help us celebrate this year’s CAUS and university-wide awards recipients! Faculty and staff look forward to these awards every spring.
Have you heard? The School of Architecture + Design will welcome new director Aaron Betsky in June.
Check out the School of Visual Arts’ BFA Capstone virtual show, an online exhibit featuring the impressive work of our Class of 2020 seniors in the studio art, creative technologies, and graphic design programs.
In case you missed it: ICAT’s Creativity and Innovation Day went fully virtual this year and featured several notable projects from CAUS faculty and students.
Ahead of the university’s 150th anniversary, the Council on Virginia Tech History has posted a public call for art to highlight the ways in which historically marginalized communities have shaped the university.
Join us on June 9 for our upcoming webinar, “Getting our health priorities straight: COVID-19 and beyond,” hosted by SPIA associate professor Stephanie Smith. You can register here.
Follow CAUS
About CAUS+effect
CAUS+effect is an online newsletter for alumni and friends published by Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture and Urban Studies. Contact causnews@vt.edu or Communications Director Emily Roediger at eroedig@vt.edu with your questions, comments, news tips, and feedback.
College of Architecture and Urban Studies
202 Cowgill Hall (0205)
1325 Perry Street
Blacksburg, VA 24061
www.caus.vt.edu