National Honors & Awards Committee

The National Honors & Awards Committee (NHAC) is the member-led group established by the AIA Board of Directors to oversee performance assessment, creation, dissolution, and governance of AIA’s national award programs.

About the committee

The National Honors & Awards Committee (NHAC) is the member-led group established by the AIA Board of Directors to oversee performance assessment, creation, dissolution, and governance of AIA’s portfolio of national awards, helping ensure awards and the portfolio align with AIA’s vision, mission, and values and continue to highlight excellence in the field of architecture.

To learn more about the committee, explore the NHAC charter and the following FAQ.

Read the charter

NHAC was created to leverage members’ expertise in the continuous improvement and opportunities in AIA’s diverse award programs. Among their responsibilities are items like creating consistency across award processes, making resources for award applicants and jurors, evaluating new and existing awards, and engaging with the wide array of award stakeholders.

NHAC addresses the needs of 24 programs in the national awards portfolio, including awards that honor exceptional individuals or organizations and awards that highlight design excellence in built projects. 

  • AIA/ACSA Topaz Medallion for Architectural Education
  • AIA/ALA Library Building Award
  • Associate Award
  • Architecture Firm Award
  • Architecture Award
  • Award for Excellence in Public Architecture
  • Collaborative Achievement Award
  • COTE® Top Ten Award
  • Design for Aging Award
  • Education Facility Design Award
  • Edward C. Kemper Award
  • Fellowship
  • Gold Medal
  • Healthcare Design Award
  • Honorary AIA Membership
  • Honorary Fellowship
  • Housing Award
  • Interior Architecture Award
  • Justice Facility Award
  • Regional & Urban Design Award
  • Twenty-five Year Award
  • Small Project Award
  • Whitney M. Young Jr. Award
  • Young Architect Award

NHAC members encompass a wide cross-section of member perspectives, including recent AIA award recipients, former jury chairs. international members, National Organization of Minority Architect representatives, and connections to AIA governance groups like the Secretary’s Advisory Committee, AIA Strategic Council, and Board of Directors.

NHAC also includes core award stakeholders like Associates, Fellows, young architects, and members from diverse firm sizes with diverse demographic and geographic backgrounds.

2026 AIA National Honors & Awards Committee Members

  • (Chair) William J. Bates, FAIA, NOMA
  • (Vice Chair) Karen Lu, FAIA, NOMA
  • Gabrielle Bullock, FAIA, NOMAC, IIDA, LEED AP
  • Tannia X. Chavez, Intl. Assoc. AIA
  • Grover C. Dear, FAIA
  • Molly Jacobs, AIA, LEED AP BD+C
  • Elaine Molinar, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP
  • Bruce A. Race, FAIA, FAICP, PhD
  • Jason Takeuchi, AIA, NCARB, NOMA, D.Arch

NHAC members are appointed by the AIA President-elect in the same process used for AIA committees, Knowledge Communities, or other membership volunteer groups. Members who wish to be considered for appointment to NHAC can apply for consideration during the AIA Call for Volunteers.

Changes to awards in the current 2027 season are not expected. As NHAC identifies ways to reduce barriers to award application and improve award assessment and community value, updates to future competitions are possible. Any recommended changes will be received by the AIA Board of Directors for review and approval before adoption. Adopted changes would impact at the earliest the next award cycle to avoid disruption during active competitions.

Current applicants and jurors are encouraged to share feedback via the experience survey distributed by staff at the close of each completion and review cycle.

Additional members with ideas to improve an AIA national award or our national awards portfolio can share their feedback by submitting a recommendation memo noting the impacted award(s) at email HonorsAwards@aia.org. 

Similarly, partner organizations at the component level or within architecture more broadly that would like to partner on award programs or initiatives can contact NHAC with opportunities via email HonorsAwards@aia.org. 

NHAC will work to create applicant and juror resources, evaluate the performance and accessibility of existing awards, and consider program changes for the awards portfolio. The committee will collaborate with award stakeholders to share applicant and juror resources, communicate any forthcoming changes, and receive community feedback. New resources and award improvements will also be shared with the community through a combination of existing resources (e.g., online, social media, newsletters).