AIA Wins 2026 Gold Circle Award for Excellence in Association Communications from ASAE

WASHINGTON – April 29, 2026 – The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is being honored with a 2026 Gold Circle Award for E-Newsletters from the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), recognizing excellence in association marketing and communications. AIA is being honored for AIA Access, a monthly member newsletter aimed at increasing awareness of underutilized member benefits.

The Gold Circle Awards honors the creativity, execution, and success of outstanding marketing, membership and communications campaigns in the association community. This year’s competition received more than 150 applications across 16 categories, including convention/meeting campaign, member retention campaign, print magazine, and video.

Serving a growing community of more than 101,000 members, AIA Access, launched in March 2025, connects members to resources like professional tools, communities, education, career support, and discounts in a concise, actionable format. Data shows members engaged with AIA communities are 17 percent more likely to renew, and those using resources report higher value. AIA Access is a key part of AIA’s engagement strategy, aligning content with organizational priorities and maintaining strong, sustained member engagement.

“This recognition of AIA Access reflects the value we strive to deliver to our 101,000 members,” said AIA CEO/Executive Vice President, Carole Wedge, FAIA, NOMA, LEED AP. “By prioritizing clarity, accessibility, and relevance, AIA Access ensures equitable access to membership benefits, fostering a more inclusive and impactful member experience.”

The 2026 Gold Circle Award winners will be recognized during ASAE’s Marketing, Membership, Communications + Tech Conference, taking place May 28-29, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC. The Gold Circle Awards are sponsored by ASAE Business Solutions, a portfolio of essential enterprise solutions designed to help associations grow and prosper.

“The Gold Circle Awards shine a light on the amazing work that associations do for the professions and communities they serve,” said Joe Rominiecki, CAE, chair of the ASAE Gold Circle Awards Committee. “Each winning project showcases the creativity and ingenuity that is abundant in marketing, membership, and communications in the association community. We are thrilled to have received so many great submissions, and we are eager to celebrate the winners next month."

For more information on the winners, visit Gold Circle Awards.

About ASAE: The Center for Association Leadership
ASAE is a membership organization of more than 50,000 association executives. Since it was established 100 years ago, its members have and continue to lead, manage, and work in or partner with organizations in more than a dozen association management disciplines, from executive management to finance to technology. With the support of the ASAE Research Foundation, a separate nonprofit entity, ASAE is the premier source of learning, knowledge, and future-oriented research for the association and nonprofit profession and provides resources, education, ideas, and advocacy to enhance the power and performance of the association and nonprofit community. Visit ASAE at asaecenter.org.