Congratulations to Kenneth Luker and Ron Stelmarski for their induction into the American Institute of Architect’s (AIA) College of Fellows. The AIA’s highest and most selective membership honor is bestowed upon architects who have made significant contributions to the profession—and society—through design excellence. Only 3% of AIA members have earned this distinction.
Learn more about our latest AIA fellows below.
Kenneth Luker, FAIA, LEED AP
Durham, North Carolina
Kenneth Luker’s designs reconcile an inequitable past with architecture’s responsibility to a more just future. With 25 years of design leadership, Luker approaches architecture with three key principles: It is not impartial; it fosters understanding and well-being; and it creates space for new communities.
On projects such as the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, he engages stakeholders and community members to realize spaces that actively confront issues of race, identity, collective memory, and even our industry’s own biases. His healthcare work—including the Cherry Psychiatric Hospital and Duke Behavioral Health Center, both in North Carolina—is also sensitive to issues surrounding equity, in particular the impact of a building’s scale on psychological well-being.
Luker is a Design Principal at Perkins&Will; an adjunct instructor at NC State College of Design; has presented his work at conferences including AIA, NOMA, and ULI; and was recently a guest speaker for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, encouraging students from minority communities to pursue careers in architecture and design.
Ron Stelmarski, FAIA, LEED AP
Dallas, Texas
Ron Stelmarski understands the significance of cultural memory and how to cultivate it. When working on a new project, he builds a strong and trusting relationship between the design team and the surrounding community. For example, the Baylor Scott & White Health Administrative Center in Dallas provides a generous, shaded plaza to increase public interaction, experiential diversity, and accessibility.
Throughout his 26 years of practice, the last 10 of which he has been Design Director of our Dallas studio, Stelmarski has worked with the history of a site to build something new that honors the past, such as with the Pittman Hotel, an adaptive reuse project in Dallas. His work on the Fair Park Master Plan in Dallas inspired his vision for Dallas included in the Watershed Urbanism Exhibit at the European Cultural Centre’s biennial architecture exhibition in Venice.
Stelmarski was a charter member of the Perkins&Will Green Committee and serves on the Texas Society of Architects’ committees on education, publications, and design awards.
