Image of members of the NOMA Town Hall

National NOMA Town Hall at Multistudio

Architect Tabitha Darko Brings NOMA to Multistudio September 2, 2022

NOMA Q3 Town Hall Meeting

The National Organization of Minority Architects is a professional conglomerate dedicated to representing and championing the progression of people of color in the design industry.

This past August, NOMA KC hosted the national executive committee for their third quarter 2022 town hall in Kansas City. The national board’s visit was an opportunity to showcase Kansas City’s vibrant and prominent architecture community during the reception at Multistudio and highlight the local chapter’s growth and impact since its recent inception in 2019.

From left to right: Former NOMA President Kimberly Dowdell and Tiffany Brown, Executive Director of NOMA

As part of the visit, the executive committee spent the weekend in meetings to further coordinate and work towards this year’s goals, emphasizing President Jason Pugh’s E3 vision during his tenure (Educate, Elevate & Empower). Included in the board’s meeting agenda were reports from separate committees focused on initiatives such as the expansion of the Project Pipeline program to include all efforts that provide support and mentorship to students of color from each area of their journey in the architecture field from elementary school to graduation and well into the industry.

NOMA national collaborates with other industry organizations to help elevate and provide access to BIPOC professionals. One of these is NCARB, which concentrates on mitigating the adversities and barriers resulting in fewer licensed professionals of color.

The perforated staircase at the Multistudio Kansas City location

NOMAKC hopes that the coalescing of the NOMA executive committee in Kansas City is a milestone amongst many more in the making that encourages the continued work, contributions, and effort to create a more equitable, just, and inclusive mindset within the AEC industry.

Photographs by Joel Avery, Chief Information Officer of NOMA

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