By Dean Zoyes '94, Alumni Council President

April is traditionally a busy month for the School of Architecture. Every year at this time, we gather with past graduates, soon-to-be graduates, and current and former faculty for our Alumni Gathering.

The gathering took place in the Warren Loranger Architecture Building on McNichols Campus.

This years' event, which was held on April 23, was hosted by Dean Stephen Vogel '70, the School of Architecture, and the Alumni Council. See pictures from the event.

We were very fortunate to have two guest speakers, Robert Sharoff and William Zbaren, deliver a short presentation about the fantastic architecture that Detroit offers us every day. Sharoff and Zbaren, author and photographer respectively, shared their findings from their widely acclaimed architectural book, American City: Detroit Architecture 1845-2005, which was also the theme of the event.

The event began with food, handshakes, libations and introductions by Dean Zoyes '94, and Vogel. Sharoff and Zbaren then proceeded to show images from their book and gave detailed descriptions of interesting buildings of Detroit. Both being residents of Chicago, they came to Detroit in 2003 only with the intention of writing an article on the renovation of the Book Cadillac Hotel and came away with an idea to produce a book that would provide a visual and written history of some of the more significant structures of the city. Their presentation gave a wonderful insight into the writing and photography process of the book, and included humor and warmth as well.

Events like these take the generous effort of alumni volunteers. Alumni Council members in particular assist in the planning, fundraising, hosting, setting up and tearing down of the event. With the leadership of committee chairperson Michele Szostak '03, and committee members Lauren Lossia '04, and Debra Davis '84, the event ran smoothly.

Thank you to current active members Lori Seit-Olsen '90, and Lydia Rener '04, who also gave their time and effort to make the event a success. The evening culminated in an informal gathering of familiar faces from the SOA's last 50 years of teaching. Conversations consisted of the on-going spirited commitment that the School of Architecture has to its alumni, faculty, students and the community.

Alumni Council members were also busy recently planning the Career Day event, which took place on April 25. Alumni Council member Andy Malone '95, organized the event, which gave high school students who are either considering or are already enrolled a sneak peek into the workings of the School of Architecture. Dean Vogel delivered an introduction of the various University programs available and discussed offerings that UDM has over other architectural programs in the area.

The day consisted of an overview of the architecture program, what to expect as a student and as a professional, a hands-on design project and critique coordinated by Professor Will Wittig and graduate students, a campus tour for the attending parents, a panel discussion with several alumni from various backgrounds in architecture and, of course, food.

Stephen Sussman '77, was the master of ceremonies for Career Day and offered each panel member an opportunity to share with prospective students his or her role as either a professional architect or in other career paths that one can pursue with a professional degree in architecture. Michael Ford '06, conducted a digital presentation that was a true crowd pleaser, complete with a series of images from his digital studio class.

Thank you to our panel members Algimantas Bublys '65, Lonnie Zimmerman '71, Beth Yorke '84, and current AIAS president and student Jeremy Kozlowski (2010) for their dedication to the future of the SOA. Also, thank you to Wittig's graduate students and AIAS members Charlie Haas and Trevor Tomlinson who lent a helping hand several times throughout the day.