Norma Merrick Sklarek (1926-2012) is among our organization’s most notable “firsts’’—the first licensed Black female architect in New York (1954) and California (1962), the first Black female member of the AIA (1959), and the first woman to be elected a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA). She is most recognized for designing the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo in 1976 and Terminal One at LAX in 1984.
Beverly Loraine Greene (1915-1957) is the first African American woman to receive a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering and is believed to be the first Black woman licensed to practice architecture in the U.S. She is most recognized for her work on the Arts Complex at Sarah Lawrence College in 1952 and the World Heritage Center in Paris, which was completed after her death in 1958.
400 Forward was founded by Detroit-based activist and aspiring architect Tiffany Brown in light of the licensing of the 400th African American woman architect in 2017. The program aims to support the career development of the next 400 Black women architects by introducing young girls to architecture, providing scholarships and wraparound services to students, and paying for study materials and licensing exams.
For more, check out www.400forward.com
Black Females in Architecture (BFA) was founded out of London in 2018 by Selasi Setufe, Akua Danso, Alisha Morenike Fisher, and Neba Sere. BFA is a support network with over 300 members that counters inequality and lack of diversity within the industry by offering shared knowledge, advice, guidance, and access to expand the visibility of Black women in architecture and the built environment.
For more, check out www.blackfemarc.com