In honor of her commitment to architectural education, the Texas Society of Architects has recognized Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design professor Donna Kacmar, FAIA, with the 2025 Award for Outstanding Educational Contributions in Honor of Edward J. Romieniec, FAIA. For more than thirty years, Kacmar has shaped generations of architects through her inspired teaching and dedication to professional practice. Her work bridges the classroom and the profession, instilling in students not only technical expertise but also a deep sense of architecture’s role in shaping communities and addressing contemporary challenges. Kacmar reflects on her journey as an educator, the influences that have shaped her career, and the lessons she continues to pass on to the next generation of designers.
What personal and academic experiences guided you toward your career in architectural
education?
Looking back, it appears my career has been guided by some good luck and several influential
architects I have met along the way who have had a large impact on me. I was lucky
enough to be in a third-year studio taught by Natalye Appel, FAIA, who showed me how
to balance practice and teaching. She has remained a friend, mentor, and collaborator
for decades. I was also lucky enough to be asked to teach while I was a graduate student.
My first teaching role was as a graduate assistant for Julius Gribou. He taught me
how to structure a course and even organize each class meeting and desk discussion.
He later hired me to teach at Texas A&M University just when I opened my architecture
firm, Architect Works. Dean Joe Mashburn, FAIA, soon brought me (back) to teach at
the University of Houston in 2000 and encouraged me to continue to practice. I also
remember him sitting next to me at a university meeting, in strong and essential support
for my case for tenure. I would certainly not be at the University of Houston without
his help and encouragement.
“My role in education is strengthened through my experiences in practice, research, and service to the profession. This also works in the other direction; being a teacher makes me a better architect or researcher.”
Can you describe the evolution of your design studio teaching?
I have taught throughout the curriculum, including undergraduate design studios, first-year
graduate studios, building technology and seminar courses, and several study abroad
programs. Each semester expands and challenges my teaching skills. I also recently
completed the Association of College and University Educators Certificate in Effective
Instruction (ACUE). I now weave many of those lessons into my current teaching approach
to enhance student engagement and outcomes.
While my studio teaching has evolved over time due to my own professional development and changes in teaching assignments, the larger evolution is due to changes in the world context and the students themselves. Educators adapt to both the changing world outside of the classroom and the people who show up inside it.
How has your professional practice shaped the real-world examples and perspectives
you bring into the classroom?
As a practicing architect, I often bring my experiences and current projects into
the classroom. While designing a small 544 square foot house for a client, the Fisher
Street House, I began looking at a range of small houses. As the project continued,
I became interested in how materials and light are integrated in the design of small
buildings. I researched small buildings designed by contemporary architects that are
also deeply connected to place and tuned to specific ways of dwelling. This led to
my first book, Big Little House, published in 2015. I brought that understanding into both my dwelling seminar course
and numerous design studios.
My latest book, Big Little Hotel, builds upon the work of my first book and extends that research into small hotels - focusing on their use of materials, light, accommodation of the act of travel, as well as specific connections to the local context. This led me to develop a hospitality focused studio in both Spring and Fall of 2022. I connected my students with faculty from the Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership through tours and invited reviews while reciprocating with guest lectures in the Hilton College. This upcoming fall semester, my fifth-year studio will explore the sensorial and experiential sequences of episodic habitation, deeply connected to place, and supporting the rituals of hospitality.
What motivated you to launch the Materials Research Collaborative at UH, and how does
it connect students to sustainable design practices?
I explore issues of materiality in my own built work, which I also introduce to students
in my teaching. This interest led directly to my founding and directing the Materials
Research Collaborative (MRC).
I directed the MRC from 2009 until 2019, and provided work study opportunities for students, as well as physical material samples and technical information to all the students in the College. I secured funding, directed the work, and established the MRC as a local leader in building material issues. Projects during my directorship included material sustainability research, database of locally manufactured materials, database of local fabricators, database of local building materials recycle and reuse centers, carbon footprint analysis of two office buildings, LEED V4 consulting, creating a national reuse database on recycling office space renovation materials, and numerous talks, lectures, and events with students and professionals. I even partnered with local firms to extend the students’ materials research into a current office project for two weeks, providing new insights for both the students and practicing architects. The MRC and the materials research projects I directed brought an expanded knowledge of materials and their relationship to sustainability to both our students and local professionals.
How do you foster innovation and critical thinking in your students?
The first thing I do is readily admit that I do not have all the answers. I share
how I go through a similar search and discovery process in design. I ask my students
to focus on discovering the issues and work to shift their thinking from what they
“want” to what is appropriate in each context or for a specific need. I also try to
encourage the thoughtful development of elements at multiple scales such as a small
detail and a larger urban plan. I believe a building should engage the scale of the
occupants’ hands and bodies as well as the scale of the street adjacent to the building.
The Romieniec Award honors educators who teach across generations and push design
toward the future while drawing on tradition. How do you see your own teaching reflecting
that legacy?
I am very proud of my teaching and what I can share with the students. My role in
education is strengthened through my experiences in practice, research, and service
to the profession. This also works in the other direction; being a teacher makes me
a better architect or researcher. I know that I might be asked a question the next
day in the classroom; I have found that teaching also keeps me honest and accountable
to something beyond myself.
What does this recognition mean for you personally? How does it reflect the broader
mission of Hines College and its students?
It is difficult to easily sum up three decades of teaching and its impact. Like most
full-time faculty, only 40% of my time is directed towards teaching. Yet the students
have always been my primary focus. I have worked to make sure my scholarship and service
also support their learning. I hope my former (and current!) students feel the care
and seriousness with which I work.
My former students are now in a variety of places and roles in Texas and beyond, often working at top architecture firms. Others are impacting change in our built environment at the urban design scale or through influencing policy. I am incredibly proud of their accomplishments and honored to have supported their learning over the years. It is so much fun to peak into the worlds they have each created. I celebrate all of them and their work with this award.
What advice would you give to emerging architecture educators or young practitioners
seeking to balance teaching, research, and real-world impact?
Teaching has changed in the past three decades in Texas. I think we are at a crossroads
in higher education as faculty are navigating shifts in learning culture, climate
change, and social justice while also following the mandated policies and laws. I
encourage emerging educators to actively focus on the craft of teaching. I think that
is our top mission. We need to prepare students to have more skills and awareness
in this shifting landscape. With regards to research, it is essential to move beyond
the competitive world of individual recognition and develop outward-focused collaborative
work. The design of the built environment is best developed when it is engaged with
the larger world, beyond academia, and with input from many.
Texas Society of Architects also honored several Hines College faculty and students with awards this year. Learn more about the winning projects.