Each year, the Friend of Architecture at Morgan (FoAM) host a panel on one issue related to the architectural profession. This year the theme was ‘History and the Profession’. I was asked to serve as a panelist with an architect and a preservationist. It ended up being a really interesting conversation, primarily because we all had slightly different takes on what the role of history was in a professional context. Of course, everyone agreed that it was important to preserve minority contributions to the built environment, but I was also interested in developing scholarship that exposed the cultural biases of architectural education and architectural historiography. I have to thank Jeremy Kargon, the graduate program director, for reaching out to include me in this year’s program. He gave me a tour of the Phil Freelon building that houses the professional architecture program there, and he walked me through the studios to show me the work of current undergrad students. I had a great time and hope to attend other events held at the school.

From Left to Right: Respondent: Samia Rab Kirchner; Panelists: Brent Leggs, Charles Davis, Roberta Washington

Me speaking with a graduate student at Morgan State. I am not sure why my eyes were closed here… probably trying to visualize a formal idea in my head!