This course will cover the specific wording of ADA Standards Section 104.1.1 on tolerances and similar language in selected other accessibility standards and explain how they should be interpreted. It will cover what types of conditions are subject to the tolerances language and which ones are not. The panelists will discuss how they measure field conditions affecting accessibility and ADA compliance, how those measurements are critical in understanding and applying the tolerances language, and what types of field conditions affect the determination of whether a measurement is within the tolerances. This session provides architects with peer feedback on a critical but highly esoteric topic. Course expires 1/6/2025

In the past decade, retail health has emerged as a popular model for bringing quality healthcare into American communities. As retailers go online, their former storefronts present opportunities for repurposing into outpatient health centers that are mutually beneficial to patients and healthcare institutions. Patient consumers can enjoy the convenience and customer experience of a retail facility located in their neighborhood while medical facilities can fulfill expansion plans with financially and environmentally efficient solutions. The adaptive reuse of big-box groceries, with their ample parking and strategic locations, has become a competitive iteration of retail health in an increasingly consumer-driven market. During this session, attendees will follow the development of Vanderbilt Health Belle Meade in Nashville, TN and the BJC Outpatient Center in Edwardsville, IL from former grocery stores to new health centers. Though Vanderbilt Health Belle Meade is an ambulatory surgical center and the BJC Outpatient Center is a multi-specialty healthcare center, these two case studies will explore their opportunities, challenges, and outcomes in transforming former supermarkets into community based, outpatient health centers. Hosted by the Academy of Architecture for Health an AIA Knowledge Community. Course expires 06/27/2025

Cities and towns across the nation are grappling with a crisis of affordable living. While some symptoms and strategies are universal, each geographical, social, economic, and political context requires a tailored approach in developing more equitable and resilient communities. Design professionals, public health specialists, policymakers, and community members alike must all come together to best ensure the places we call home are designed in the best interest for all. This panel will explore the topic of housing affordability in three distinct locales through the lenses of architects and planners, both in private practice and non-profit organizations, sharing the common goal of developing quality and affordable housing for all.  Hosted by Regional and Urban Design Committee (RUDC). Course expires 9/10/2025

Advances in AI are contributing to an immersion of new technology and automation, which is just breaching the threshold of architecture. This discussion will explore the breadth of opportunities AI provides. Our goal is to inform about AI trends, its current capabilities, where it’s going, new innovations, and what benefits we can gleam from using this technology. Michael Schroeder, SGA Partner/leader of its VDC discipline, will be joined by AI experts to discuss a future where A&D teams collaborate with AI to construct the buildings of tomorrow. It will draw those interested in opportunities AI creates as it branches into the AEC world. Just as AI impacted research, machine learning & driverless-vehicles, new innovations like Open Source Neural Networks & next-generation inventions will be discussed. Course expires 1/17/2026

What progress has more than 23,000 projects totaling 3.8 billion GSF designed last year made towards net-zero carbon? The AIA 2030 Commitment, a key climate action program, brings together a network of over 1,250 signatory architecture and design firms dedicated to tracking their projects’ energy data to reach carbon neutrality in the built environment. Upon this year’s release of the 2030 By the Numbers (RY22), join us for a conversation on the high-level findings from the report, including where we are succeeding as an industry and where we can still improve based on the reported data. We will discuss data trends on overall energy performance, the incorporation of energy modeling in projects, the inclusion of renewable energy sources as well as embodied carbon data. Course expires 12/12/2026 This session was recorded live on October 31, 2023.

Thursday, October 24, 2024  |  3:00-4:00pm ET What progress has more than 24,000 projects totaling 3.9 billion GSF designed last year made towards net-zero carbon? The AIA 2030 Commitment, a key climate action program, brings together a network of over 1,350 signatory architecture and design firms dedicated to tracking their projects’ energy data to reach carbon neutrality in the built environment. Upon this year’s release of the 2030 By the Numbers (RY23), join us for a conversation on the high-level findings from the report, including where we are succeeding as an industry and where we can still improve based on the reported data. We will discuss data trends on overall energy performance, the incorporation of energy modeling in projects, and the inclusion of renewable energy sources and embodied carbon data. 

What progress have more than 20,000 projects designed last year made towards net-zero carbon? Join us for a conversation on findings from signatories of the AIA 2030 Commitment in 2021, a key climate action program for reaching net zero emissions in the built environment. We’ll examine a variety of achievements, ranging from increases in gross square footage meeting the 80% reduction target to the big leaps in renewable energy reported, signaling positive trends for the industry in meeting net-zero carbon goals. Beyond high-level trends across all projects, we’ll also investigate the performance between different use types and various geographies, and where we can see just how important policy is in accelerating high performance.   Course expires 9/18/2025

Within the context of business models, what are the characteristics that would make someone a successful entrepreneur? What are the obstacles for architects to break out of our traditional model? Economics plays a central role in our ability to expand services or take our practice in new directions.  Our expert panel, moderated by AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, considers ways in which architects can create new sources of revenue by expanding their practices in different ways and embracing new models for doing business.  Questions explored include how architects are uniquely suited to development, key measures for exploring development opportunities, and factors influencing the decision process around undertaking a new business venture.   This cutting-edge discussion will inspire and enlighten you. This course expires on 4/20/2026.  

Do you want to integrate resilience into the design services your firm offers? The Resilience and Adaptation series is your answer. This exclusive multi-course series covers mitigation, resilience and adaptation, technical design application, and design process application. Take all courses in the series to learn best practices for mitigating risk for hazards, shocks, and stresses and adapting to changing conditions. Perfect for midcareer architects. Anyone completing all courses in the AIA Resilience and Adaptation series will receive a certificate acknowledging their completion of all courses in the program, in addition to the individual course certificates available for each course. This course is sponsored by Owens Corning

The building sector is the single largest consumer of energy and producer of greenhouse gas emissions. The AIA 2030 Commitment provides an actionable framework for architects and designers to meet the 2030 Challenge goals of carbon neutral buildings by 2030. This series will inspire architects to meet the 2030 goals through design strategies, efficient technologies and systems, and renewable energy resources.  Anyone completing all courses in the AIA+2030 Online Series will receive a certificate acknowledging their completion of all courses in the program, in addition to the individual course certificates available upon completion of each course. The AIA+2030 Online Series is an AIA and Architecture 2030 co-production. It's based on the highly successful AIA+2030 Professional Series, which was created by AIA Seattle and Architecture 2030, with support from the City of Seattle and Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance. Sponsored by CertainTeed Unlock 50% off this series courtesy of CertainTeed! Limited time offer. Sign up here to receive your coupon code.

Architecture is an industry rich with opportunity for individuals yearning to weave their creative talents with meaningful work that will leave a lasting imprint in the world. This panel will look at the various alternate career paths architects and designers can take along their own professional journeys. Attendees will learn how to leverage their architecture degree and license to achieve greater career satisfaction by aligning career choice with personal passion. Hosted by the AIA Women's Leadership Summit. Recorded live on June 7, 2022. Course expires 6/13/2025

How do you successfully invest nearly $300 million in a master plan for a state psychiatric campus in the middle of a rapidly developing urban community? This session will look at how the redevelopment of the former Austin State Hospital campus provides an opportunity for academic engagement in the clinical process, implements a continuum of care, and offers opportunities for mental health partnerships in the heart of Austin, Texas. This project involved collaboration between the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, and a variety of design professionals and community advocates to master plan and execute on the construction of the new 240-adult bed Austin State Hospital. This panel is moderated by Nick Faust. This session was recorded live on March 21, 2023.

Ancient Design Principles for the Modern Day looks to the past in order to pave way for a more sustainable future. In this course, we’ll investigate the design and architectural universality of four historical cultures across space and time. Explore how past relationships to color, wellness and ecology can ignite modern designs that not only sustains future generations, but continues the legacy of timeless inspiration. This course was recorded live on July 30, 2024. Course expires 06/21/2025

Accessibility is fundamental in today's architecture practice. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies not only to new construction, but also when remodeling existing facilities—and the guidelines and exceptions can be confusing. In this case-study course, we'll present real-life examples of applying the ADA during renovations. Topics to be covered include: The challenges of knowing how and when to apply the ADA to ensure accessibility compliance The difference between an alteration and an alteration of an area containing a primary function What happens if an existing building is not being altered, and what exceptions apply when an alteration occurs Course expires 1/6/2025

Wednesday, October 23, 2024  |  3:00-4:00pm EST Digital transformation is critical for businesses to thrive, and emerging technologies, like artificial intelligence, show massive promise for organizational efficiencies and improvements. However, identifying, implementing, and adopting technology-based tools can often be intimidating and overwhelming. Companies frequently fail to realize that the ability to innovate is more accessible than ever. Taking small steps in using things like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other technologies can set you up for bigger advancements. Attend this session to learn how to make innovation accessible and see some examples and use cases your firm might explore to help secure the future.

Join the WLS founders in conversation. This session will explore the challenges and opportunities experienced at various career stages that brought us together to form the AIA Boston Women Principals Group. You'll learn how the power of this community led to the inaugural Women's Leadership Summit. You'll hear how conventional and unconventional strategies were utilized effectively to bring about meaningful and measurable change by building a new movement that continues to touch all regions of the country and span generations of leaders. And you'll discuss lessons learned that continue to lead to refinements and pivots, all with the goal of keeping WLS inclusive, timely, and meaningful. Come prepared to share your thoughts on how this movement can evolve and inspire design professionals of all backgrounds to foster support, mentorship, and pathways to grow careers with a focus on leadership and design. Be empowered as we discuss how each of us can (and must!) step up to ensure a pipeline of future women leaders. Course expires 10/22/2026

This panel will examine the opportunities and barriers for making models reliable tools and deliverables on construction projects.  The current challenge is that – even though BIM is well established in our industry – we still don’t trust models or treat models as reliable means of conveying design and construction information. Documents represented as 2D PDFs are the predominant means of representing and transferring design and construction information. Models are provided on many projects for information only.  Even though we are all very familiar and comfortable with drawings they may not be the ideal tool for representing design and construction information. Drawings can hide or ignore complexities and contain undetected inconsistencies in the design. Furthermore, drawings require a high degree of interpretation in order to apply the information contained in them to the project. Hosted by the Project Delivery AIA Knowledge Community Course expires 3/12/2025  

The integrative process relies on the series workshops that keep the project on track and the expanded team on the same page. But given all the considerations, planning a series of successful workshops can be a challenge, especially when integrating health. With the help of two case studies, this course will walk you through key considerations and goals for workshops in each phase of the design process. You will get an overview of how to keep your stakeholders engaged, the kinds of information you would present at each phase, and various facilitation techniques to ensure success even after the workshop is complete. Course expires on 9/13/2026.

You cannot control what curve-balls are thrown your way (yes, including a global pandemic), but you can control how you respond. When faced with adversity, feeling lost or even paralyzed, is completely normal, but within life's setback lies a silver lining: an opportunity to lean into the most incredible comeback - and growth - you could have ever imagined. Learn how to work through the five stages of a setback, increase your productivity levels, nurture meaningful business relationships in a virtual world, and build a powerful professional brand based on a strong foundation, mission, and creative, empathetic leadership. Course expires 10/31/2026.

​​Experiential design is uniquely human in nature. Designers and creators are challenged to bring a brand to life within a space, creating a meaningful connection through creativity and ingenuity, leaving a lasting impact. Join Lacy Maxwell, Founder and CEO of Lacy Maxwell Experiential, for a conversation about using humanity to inspire design. ​ Hosted by the Retail and Entertainment Knowledge Community (REKC). Course expires 9/30/2026 This session was recorded live on November 8, 2023.