A big thank you to the professionals who joined us at Klein Harris last night for our Sessional Instructor Appreciation Reception!
Hosted by our senior leadership team - Dean John Brown and Associate Deans Jason Johnson, Enrica Dall’Ara, and Alberto de Salvatierra - the evening recognized the practitioners who bring real-world insight, mentorship, and industry experience into our classrooms.
We’re grateful for the time and expertise you share with our community!
Matthew Parker presented at the RAIC / CCUSA Academic Summit in Vancouver this week. We’re proud to see this excellent work shared on a national stage.
His presentation, “When Everything Looks Like Mastery,” explored how generative AI is reshaping architectural education - and the growing challenge of recognizing learning when traditional visual signals of mastery can be convincingly simulated.
@raic_irac
Design education is evolving - not just in what students create, but in how they think, collaborate, and adapt.
At the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape (SAPL), the Bachelor of Design in City Innovation (BDCI) program is piloting Future Skills modules through FUSION, a national initiative focused on embedding transferable skills into post-secondary learning. This work reflects a broader shift in design education - recognizing the importance of preparing students for complex, transdisciplinary, and evolving professional environments.
These modules focus on skills such as Collaboration, Constructive Dialogue, Metacognition, and Digital Literacy, and are scaffolded across the first two years of the program to align with both curriculum and student learning needs. Rather than existing as standalone content, they are integrated directly into coursework and applied through studio projects and group work.
At SAPL, this approach is part of a broader commitment to connecting academic learning with real-world competencies - ensuring students are equipped to think critically, collaborate effectively, and adapt within an evolving design landscape.
Watch the video to hear from Gillian Robertson (OSLE) and BDCI student partners as they share how these skills are being experienced in studio, group work, and digital practice.
🔗 Learn more via the link in our bio
#UCalgarySAPL #UCalgary #FutureSkills
At the RAIC Conference, Dean John Brown joined Darryl Condon of @hcma.ca to share SAPL’s vision for becoming North America’s most entrepreneurial, context-embedded design school.
From strategic direction to our new downtown location, the session explored how SAPL is rethinking design education and its connection to the city.
Thank you to @raic_irac , Darryl Condon, and everyone who joined the conversation.
#UCalgarySAPL #RAIC #Architecture
Great to reconnect with our alumni community in Vancouver! 🎉
From long-time graduates to more recent ones, the range of journeys in the room made for a meaningful evening of conversation, reflection, and looking ahead - including hearing what’s new at SAPL from Dean John Brown. Hearing “when can we do this again?” was the best takeaway of all.
Thank you to everyone who came out to be part of it - we’re looking forward to more moments like this!
#UCalgarySAPL #UCalgaryAlumni #SAPL
Earlier today at the Banff Session, Dean John Brown introduced the first keynote speaker, Daniel Baumann, Principal and Design Director at @henninglarsenarchitects .
Hosted by the Alberta Association of Architects (AAA), this year’s Banff Session explores Origin Stories - examining how personal and collective histories shape architecture and interior design, and how the past can inform future innovation.
#UCalgarySAPL #Architecture #BanffSession
YES 2026 ✨
A few moments from our Year End Show - student work on display, conversations in motion, and a space filled with curiosity and celebration.
Thank you to everyone who joined us to support students in architecture, planning, and landscape architecture and mark the close of another academic year.
#UCalgarySAPL #SAPLYES #FutureCities
YES 2026 ✨
Our Year End Show was a celebration of a full year of work by students in architecture, planning, and landscape architecture - from early ideas to final projects shaped by questions of climate, equity, and the future of Calgary.
Thank you to everyone who came through to celebrate, reflect, and support our students.
#UCalgarySAPL #SAPLYES #FutureCities
YES is on today ✨
Our Year End Show is taking over downtown with student work across architecture, planning, and landscape—from drawings and models to speculative futures for Calgary.
Right in the middle of the city, big conversations about climate, equity, and city‑making are happening inside.
Free and open to alumni, friends, family, and the wider community.
Parking is limited, so arrive early or take transit if you can.
#UCalgarySAPL #SAPLYES #FutureCities
Last day of Grad Final Reviews - and for many of our MArch, MPlan, and MLA students, the culmination of their graduate studies.
Across research‑driven projects, design investigations, and Work Integrated Learning Studios, students have spent this final semester testing ideas, engaging with real‑world contexts, and advancing critical questions through their work.
Final reviews are more than presentations - they are moments of rigorous dialogue, where research, practice, and reflection come together through thoughtful critique and constructive feedback. For students preparing to graduate, these conversations help refine not only the work itself, but also how they articulate their thinking as emerging professionals.
Thank you to all the faculty, instructors, and guest reviewers who joined us throughout our Grad Final Reviews and generously shared their time, insight, and expertise. Your contributions play an essential role in shaping student learning at this pivotal moment.
#UCalgarySAPL #GradStudio #FinalReviews
