July 10, 2011

With the retirement of Paul Hirshorn as the Architecture Program Director, we are pleased to announce Dr. Ulrike Altenmüller-Lewis will join Jon Coddington, the Department Head of Architecture and Interiors, as the new Architecture Program Director. Ulrike is particularly well qualified to assume these duties having served the Architecture Program with great distinction as Associate Program Director since 2008. She has brought new energy, insight and rigor to the program through her continued contributions.

Prior to her position at Drexel University, Ulrike taught at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar in Germany and at the Washington Alexandria Architecture Center of VirginiaTech. Ulrike is a registered architect in New York State and with the Architektenkammer Baden-Württemberg, Germany and has practiced in Germany as well as in the USA, where she has been working with RTKL Associates in Washington DC and Alfredo De Vido in New York City.

Ulrike holds a Diploma in Architecture and a Doctorate from the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Germany. She has also studied architecture at the Escuela Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid, Spain and in Rome, Italy. In her research, Ulrike focuses on school architecture and the impact of the built environment on human wellbeing and performance. Recently she was invited to present her findings on contemporary Finnish school buildings and educational environments in several international conferences.

Luckily for the program and the department, Paul will continue to be a strong presence in the coming year. Paul Hirshorn was the Head of the Department of Architecture since 1986, and a member of the faculty since 1974 - an adjunct professor until appointed Department Head in 1986. Under his leadership the Department launched the unique 2+4 Option, added Summer Study Tours in Rome and Paris, and the Arfaa Lecture Series in Architecture.  As professor emeritus he will assist in our upcoming accreditation visit and continue to educate within the department, assuring that the leadership transition is smooth and effective.

Ulrike, Jon and Rena Cumby, the Associate Department Head and Interiors Program Director, look forward to working closely with the faculty, staff, students and alumni to build on and strengthen the strong traditions and mission of the program while at the same time looking for opportunities that will allow us to distinguish the department and its programs as a 21st century design education model.