Student ASLA

Student ASLA Update

The Student Chapter of the ASLA made important advancements under the leadership of the 2018-2019 student officers. This year, the chapter produced an outstanding ASLA Student Handbook that is being used as a model by the national ASLA. A successful Student ASLA CREATE 2020 differential tuition proposal allowed the department to send 14 students to the National ASLA Conference in Philadelphia. During the conference, the LAEP students won third place in the School Spirit Award Competition, which earned five free student registrations to the 2019 conference in San Diego. Building on that success, the student chapter applied for and was awarded funding via CREATE 2020 (differential tuition) that will pay for registration, travel and housing for fifteen students attending the San Diego conference.

The newly elected 2019-2020 Student ASLA officers include: President-Anthony Manzione, President Elect-Kalie Clarke, VP of Public Relations-Natalie Jones, VP of Professional Development-Josh Quigley, Treasurer-Madison Pong, VP of Outreach-Nicholas Leschofs, and VP of Events-Sarah Tooley.

Many of the successful programs initiated by the Student ASLA, such as ‘Genius Hour’ luncheon presentations in the Common Studio and the LAEP Christmas Party in addition to their collaboration with ASLA Utah through the mentorship program, Winter Social and portfolio review night, will be continued and expanded. David Anderson’s service on the ASLA Utah Executive Committee has significantly enhanced the Student ASLA connection to the professional community and added to the collaborative spirit of both groups.

Community Design Teams

During the 2018-2019 academic year, LAEP students volunteered to design and plan an array of projects for public agencies and non-profit organizations. The Community Design Team (CDT) program generates cost-recovery fees that support the Student Chapter of the ASLA. These fees fund extra-curricular social and educational programs within the department and connect the students to the professional chapter through the mentorship program and key social events.

The CDT projects are service-learning experiences that advance leadership and management skills, enrich portfolios, and provide exposure to clientinitiated planning and design experiences. During the past academic year, some of the completed projects include: the concept design for a 26-acre community park in Hyrum City, which was produced collaboratively with Ole’s Recreation and Open Space studio; a play area and permaculture garden design for the Center for Creativity, Innovation and Discovery, a K-8 in Providence; the design of a water-wise garden located around the entire site of the historic Carnegie Library in downtown Smithfield; and a downtown identity and design plan for Riverton.

Professional Practice Associate Professor David Evans is the faculty advisor to the CDT with project support from faculty colleagues. During 2018-19, Travis Lindberg served as the student program manager and will serve in that capacity again in 2019-20.