The Firm Achievement Award is the highest honor that AIA Austin can bestow on an architecture firm for outstanding contributions to the community, profession, and/or the creation of distinguished architecture.

Previous Award Recipients:

1997 Moore/Andersson Architects
1998 Page Southerland Page
1999 Barnes Architects
2000 TeamHaas
2001 Mell Lawrence Architects
2002 KRDB
2003 Black & Vernooy
2004 Graeber Simmons & Cowan
2005/06 Miro Rivera Architects
2007 McKinney York Architects
2008 Limbacher Godfrey
2009 Dick Clark + Associates
2010 Furman + Keil Architects
2011 Paul Lamb Architects
2012 Taniguchi Architects
2013 Clayton&Little Architects
2014 Cotera+Reed Architects
2015 alterstudio architecture, llp
2016 Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
2017 Baldridge Architects
2018 STG Design
2019 Webber+Studio, Architects
2020 Page/
2021 Studio8
2022 McCann Adams Studio
2023 Murray Legge Architecture
2024 Thoughtbarn

The Emerging Professional Achievement Award recognizes professional achievement and leadership by architects who are in their first 10 years of practice after licensure.

Previous Award Recipients:

1996 Chris Noack, AIA
1997 Jacqueline Dodson, AIA
1998 Suzanne Rose, AIA
1999 Heather Solis, AIA
2000 Michael Wm. Rupe, Assoc. AIA
2001 Brian Roeder, AIA
2002 Amy Hammons, Assoc. AIA
2003 Michelle Rossomando, AIA
2004 Michele Van Hyfte, AIA
2005/06 Murray Legge, AIA
2007 Paul Bielamowicz, AIA
2008 Stephen Oliver, AIA
2009 Richard Weiss, AIA
2010 Eva Schone, AIA
2011 Brandon Townsend, AIA
2012 Keith Simon, AIA
2013 Philip Southwick, AIA
2014 John Cameron, AIA
2015 Beau Frail, Assoc. AIA
2016 Jaime Crawley, AIA
2017 Matt Fajkus, AIA
2018 Shelby Blessing, AIA
2019 Diana Su, AIA
2020 Lucy Begg, AIA
2021 Sophia Razzaque, AIA
2022 Stephi Motal, AIA
2023 Gabriella Bermea, AIA
2024 Mikel Bennett, AIA and Ashley Heeren, AIA

Awarded to an individual Associate AIA member who best exemplifies the highest qualities of leadership, and has demonstrated unparalleled dedication and commitment to the AIA Austin Chapter, the community, and to the profession of architecture. The nominee should be a role model in the organization with these qualities: goes beyond the call of duty in service to the profession, influences improvement in the organization at the local level, encourages participation among fellow members and nonmembers, exemplifies qualities of leadership and of professional practice.

Previous Award Recipients:

2016 Wilson Hack, Assoc. AIA
2017 David Goujon, Assoc. AIA
2018 Gerardo Gandy, Assoc. AIA
2019 Ricardo Maga Rojas, Assoc. AIA
2020 Christine Sheng, Assoc. AIA
2021 Kendall Claus, Assoc. AIA
2022 Viviana Trevino, AIA
2023 Ray Santana-Linares, Assoc. AIA
2024 Alexandra Chaves, Assoc. AIA

(Formerly the Edwin Waller Award for Public Architecture)
This award is presented to recognize achievements of architects, public officials, or other individuals for their role as advocates for the advancement of architecture through their work with the public, or from which the public and/or community benefits. To reflect the breadth and evolution of Austin’s architecture as well as the diversity of the community who shapes it, this award will be jointly presented by AIA Austin and the Austin Foundation for Architecture with a new name beginning in 2020. Formerly named after Edwin Waller, Austin’s first mayor, for his early contributions to the City, including the establishment of the original city grid, the Award for Public architecture is renamed in honor of Alan Y. Taniguchi, FAIA. As an early stalwart for social consciousness and environmental sensitivity through the practice of architecture, Taniguchi’s professional and academic legacies remain relevant to the criteria that currently shapes our city.

Previous Award Recipients:

1998 Lex Acker, AIA
1999 Girard Kinney, AIA
2000 Stan Graves, AIA
2001 Toni Thomasson, AIA
2002 Nathan Schneider, AIA
2003 Jana McCann, AIA
2004 Herman Thun, AIA
2005/06 Greg Kiloh, AIA
2007 Melba Whatley, Hon. TxA
2008 George Adams
2009 Sue Edwards
2010 Will Wynn
2011 Jim Walker
2012 Stuart Sampley, AIA
2013 Kalpana Sutaria, AIA
2014 Richard Morgan
2015 Chris Riley
2016 Jill and Stephen Wilkinson
2017 Sharon Fleming, AIA
2018 Not Awarded
2019 Alan Holt, AIA
2020 Senator Kirk Watson
2021 Bill Mullane, AIA
2022 Peter Mullan
2023 Molly Alexander
2024 Keenan Smith, AIA

Named to acknowledge the first recipient, John V. Nyfeler, FAIA, for his leadership in the community, this award is for an individual AIA Austin member for extended commitment to their community whether or not this service is directly related to the profession. Recipients should demonstrate how their contributions have improved the standard of living of the community or how they have influenced policies that support those improvements.

Previous Award Recipients:

2003 John V. Nyfeler, FAIA
2004 Girard Kinney, AIA
2005/06 Laurie Limbacher, AIA
2007 Karen McGraw, AIA
2008 Tom Hatch, AIA
2009 Juan Cotera, FAIA
2010 Donna Carter, FAIA
2011 Sinclair Black, FAIA
2012 Jana McCann, AIA
2013 Milton E. Hime, AIA
2014 Stephen K. Oliver, AIA
2015 Alan Holt, AIA
2016 Philip Keil, AIA
2017 Jim Susman, AIA
2018 CodeNext Advocacy Team
2020 Benny L. Hawkins, AIA
2021 AIA Austin Women in Architecture Committee
2022 Wendy Dunnam Tita, FAIA
2023 Veronica Castro de Barrera, AIA
2024 Camille Jobe, AIA

First awarded to Austin Foundation Communities in 2011, this award serves to recognize an individual or organization that has been instrumental in moving forward an affordable housing initiative in the greater Austin area.

Previous Award Recipients:

2011 Foundation Communities
2012 Diana McIver
2013 Austin Community Design & Development Center
2014 Guadalupe Neighborhood Development Corporation
2015 Austin Habitat for Humanity
2016 Mobile Loaves and Fishes
2017 Blackland CDC
2018 The Housing Authority of the City of Austin
2020 Clarksville Community Development Corporation
2021 Chestnut Neighborhood Revitalization Corporation
2022 Community First! Village
2023 Project Transitions
2024 Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation