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| A historical cabin on the Vonnegut Cabin Loop in Thoreau, New Mexico. (Photo by Jesse Kuroiwa, CAP VRC.) |
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ColoradoBuildingWorkshop Returns to Cottonwood Gulch Expeditions to Transform its Historic Vonnegut Cabin Loop The ColoradoBuildingWorkshop is contributing to the next chapter of Cottonwood Gulch Expeditions through the transformation of its historic Vonnegut Cabin Loop in Thoreau, New Mexico. Through adaptive reuse, sustainable materials, and careful intervention, the student-led design-build project reimagines these historic cabins balancing comfort, safety, and contemporary needs while preserving the spirit of Cottonwood Gulch for future generations. |
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Celebrate 100 Years of Built Environment EducationIn 1926, the University of Colorado offered its first built environment course, laying the foundation for a century of educating the visionaries who shape our communities and the built environment. Today, our programs continue to lead in architecture, urban and regional planning, landscape architecture, urban design, historic preservation, interior design, and beyond, making an impact locally, nationally, and around the world.
Join us throughout the year as we commemorate 100 Years of Built Environment Education in Colorado with special events, inspiring speakers, exhibitions, reunions, and opportunities to connect with the people who have shaped, and continue to shape, our legacy. |
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CAP Centennial CelebrationDid you know? Universities in the United States did not offer architectural programs until the 1860s. Before then, architects trained in traditional apprenticeship systems, learning both design and physical construction from an experienced master builder or master mason. In the mid-nineteenth century, with population growth and increasing industrialization, the profession developed more systematic ways to train architects and moved this training to universities. This initiated studies in the built environment with landscape architecture being introduced as an academic discipline in 1900 and urban planning established as a academic discipline in 1924. |
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Each CAP summer camp culminated in a final presentation, providing an opportunity for students to share their projects and models. (Photo by CAP VRC.) |
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The College of Architecture and Planning held three camps this summer: one five-day day camp and two seven-day overnight camps. Administered by Jeana Delamarter, Manager of Undergraduate Recruitment and K-12 Outreach, and led by Instructor Sheena Rude, 110 high school students from California, Colorado, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington, and beyond had the opportunity to learn more about architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, and urban design while exploring the Auraria Campus and enjoying excursions around the city. - Architecture in the City, an interdisciplinary program designed for students entering their sophomore, junior, and senior year of high school, provided experience in model building and drawing techniques through a design build project. The day camp ran from June 8 - June 12, and overnight campers were on campus from June 20 - June 27.
- The ACE Summer Camp, an overnight summer camp in partnership with the ACE Mentor Program, ran from July 11-18. Students investigated design, digital fabrication, and sustainable design and had the opportunity to participate in a design build project with other students from ACE Mentor affiliates across the U.S.
CAP received the ACE Mentor Program of Colorado's Community Impact Award at their 2026 Out for Summer awards and fundraising event on June 10. The award, accepted my ACE Mentor Program board member Leo Darnell, honors organizations that demonstrate an exceptional commitment to engaging high school students in the architecture, construction, and engineering industries while making significant contributions to Colorado communities and advancing the professions.
Professor Ann Komara received a Partners in Documentation award from the Historic Preservation Education Fund. The $6000 award will be used to offset student costs associated with field documentation experiences in the Master of Landscape Architecture Immersive Semester being taught in Fall 2026 by Professor Komara and Associate Professor Joern Langhorst.
Dean David Rifkind was invited to contribute an entry to Architectural Record's Semiquincentennial Practitioners and Scholars Survey: 250 Years of American Architecture, showcasing iconic buildings in the U.S. Dr. Rifkind's submission celebrates an iconic and somewhat whimsical architectural landmark enjoyed by millions of visitors from around the world, Cinderella Castle, the most visible symbol of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.
Associate Professor Joern Langhorst presented “Unsettling Urbanity: Cities between Utopia and Dystopia,” exploring strategies and tactics in highly contested situations and presenting elements of critical, action-oriented spatial practices that meaningfully engage conflict and focus on dissent as a central dimension of community-engaged action,, at the Livable Cities conference, University of Salford, Manchester, UK on June 18, 2026.
Assistant Professor Priyanka deSouza, Associate Professor Carrie Makarewicz, and colleagues, including CAP PhD students Ebru Altintas Solakoglu and Elizabeth Dzwonczyk, co-authored "Weathering the Ride: Associations of Heat, Smoke, Precipitation, and Ozone with Bus Ridership in Colorado" published in Environmental Research, Vol. 306. Part 2. September 15, 2026.
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| Jeremy Zerger Takes on Rewarding Community Work Through the University Technical Assistance Program |
Master of Architecture student Jeremy Zerger was hanging out with his classmates when he learned about the University Technical Assistance Program (UTAP) at CU Denver and its deep connection with Colorado communities. Jeremy immediately went home and applied for a UTAP job. “This experience has deepened my understanding of architecture as a form of service,” said Jeremy. “Viewing design through that lens requires asking an essential question, “Who am I serving?” The experienced has also encouraged me to think more critically about what I want from a career in architecture and reinforced a desire to pursue community centered work with a range of design disciplines. Working with UTAP has shown me that architecture is more than just creating buildings. It’s also about listening carefully, responding to real needs, and helping communities shape their own futures.” |
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| Students in the Colorado Mountain Town Studio with Lecturer Andrew Rutz (back row, fourth from left) spent the summer semester helping the Town of Alma, Colorado, update their 2016 Comprehensive Plan. (Photos provided by Andrew Rutz.) |
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| MURP Planning Project Studio: Colorado Mountain Town Studio in Alma The Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP) Planning Project Studio is the Department of Urban and Regional Planning's advanced studio course. The course requires students to work collaboratively to complete a planning project from beginning to end for a client, immersing them in a real-world property or policy development project. When conducted in the Colorado Mountain Town Studio setting in the summer semester, this charge is undertaken in a compressed, but equally rigorous, timeframe. The intent of the studio course is to develop each student’s understanding of timely town and countywide planning, policy issues, and how they influence the ability to implement the vision of the community in a smaller, mountain town context.
Led by Lecturer Andy Rutz, and supported by PhD student Ebru Altintas Solakoglu, the summer 2026 Colorado Mountain Town Studio focused on assisting the Town of Alma with an update to their 2016 Comprehensive Plan. Fourteen MURP students worked collaboratively to analyze the existing conditions within the community from a quantitative data standpoint as well as through on-the-ground documentation and qualitative assessment across three visits to the community. During a week-long visit in the community, at the midpoint of the summer semester, the students conducted a robust set of community engagement, including intercept interviews, facilitating a series of stakeholder interviews with local business owners and community members, and hosting a public open house that was remarkably well attended by the community.
The Alma community, town staff, the mayor, and town board enthusiastically embraced the students and their work, welcoming them into the community and expressing support for their initial recommendations and findings. As the summer semester came to a close, the studio provided a series of targeted and in-depth updates to the comprehensive plan, including a proposed set of community values, a corresponding vision statement, and specific plan elements such as land use and housing, transportation and infrastructure, open space, environment and recreation, tourism and economic development, and government relations and regional services. |
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August 5, 2026 | Anschutz Medical Campus You're invited to the Opening Reception of the Design/HEALth exhibition, showcasing work by students from the CU Denver College of Architecture and Planning and CU Boulder Department of Environmental Design. Join us on Wednesday, August 5, from 5-7 p.m. at the Fulginiti Gallery on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Learn more about the reception and the Design/HEALth Fall 2026 Speaker Series.
August 25, 2026 | College of Architecture and Planning
Join us for "SHIFT: Observations Toward a New Agenda for Architecture and Theory after Postmodernism," with Florencia Rodriguez, architect, critic, curator, lecturer, and founding principal of _NESS, an international cultural platform for architecture. Miranda Lash, the Ellen Bruss Chief Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver, will moderate a discussion reconsidering the relationship between architectural practice and critical theory after postmodernism. From 12-1 p.m. in CAP's second-floor gallery.
Through August 31, 2026 | College of Architecture and Planning We invite you to visit CAP's Showcase 26, featuring a cross section of exceptional student work. You'll find work on view on the second floor of the CU Denver Building and vitrine displays in the adjacent Annex Lobby and windows along Larimer Street between 14th and Speer. Stop by Mondays - Fridays from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. or email [email protected] to arrange a tour.
September 24, 2026 | Denver Performing Arts Complex
Stop by the Common Ground Community Design Project Reception to view design projects by CU Denver architecture students and celebrate the inaugural Denver Community Design Festival, co-curated by Leyuan Li, assistant professor at the CU Denver College of Architecture and Planning, and the Denver Mayor's Office. The festival is also presented as part of Doors Open Denver, organized by the Denver Architecture Foundation. The festival will feature five temporary installations co-designed and fabricated by CU Denver architecture students, local community organizations, Assistant Professor Leyuan Li, and Assistant Professor Danny Wills. The reception will run from 5-7 p.m. at the Denver Performing Arts Complex, 1400 Curtis St., Denver 80204.RSVP requested.
October 3, 2026 | College of Architecture and Planning
The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art, in collaboration with University of Colorado Denver, will host a Workshop in Classical Architecture on Saturday, October 3, 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., at the College of Architecture and Planning. Free for students and faculty; $50 for professionals. Please register to attend. |
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