In mid-September about 40 HISD teachers, administrators, architects, and architecture students from the University of Houston gathered at the Chapter office for a pair of workshops led by Ginny Graves, Hon. AIA, of CUBE-the Center for Understanding the Built Environment. These workshops were the kick-off for the annual Architecture Is Fun program of the Chapter, directed by the Architecture for Kids Committee. Marie Hoke, AIA, and Juan Rodriguez chair this committee.

While the Chapter's program is about 15 years old, it was energized this year by confirmation from the Carnegie Foundation's report on architecture education and practice. Lee Mitgang and Ernest Boyer, principal investigators, said in part:

"We became convinced, however, that the core elements of architecture education-learning to design within constraints, collaborative learning, and the refining of knowledge through the reflective act of design-have relevance and power far beyond the training of future architects. [Those elements] could be as enriching for students of all ages and interests as they are for aspiring architects, if only they were better known and more widely appreciated."

Another new and exciting element is the emergence of Sharpstown Middle School as a proposed magnet school for architecture and graphic design. The director of that program and three of the teachers attended the workshop. Representatives from the Education Department of the Museum of Fine Arts participated as well and began discussions of future collaboration on public education programs about architecture, not only for children but also for adults.

The Boyer report also calls attention to "the architecture community's long history of failure to connect itself firmly to the larger concerns confronting families, businesses, schools, communities, and society."

This workshop, the commitment to architecture and to education it demonstrated, and the connections made represent AIA Houston's efforts to reverse that "long history of failure." It's not too late to join Marie and Juan in working with students from K-12. Teacher/architect pairings are currently being made. Another training session will be held later this fall. If you are interested in any aspect of this-K-12 education, the magnet school, the museum connection, or the high school design competition planned for the spring-call the Chapter office. You won't be sorry.

Martha C. Murphree, Hon. AIA