There’s a buzz building around the SPHHS’ brand-new Hub! We are excited to share a Walkthrough of the UMass Amherst School of Public Health & Health Sciences HUB, set to open Spring 2026. Follow along as Dean Anna Maria Siega-Riz steps into the site to see what it takes to make such a transformative project a reality: Here 

The HUB creates a unified gathering place for the dispersed School of Public Health & Health Sciences (SPHHS) – a new core where students can learn, collaborate, access support and advising services, and foster a stronger sense of community.

One of the most important and growing schools at the University of Massachusetts, SPHHS is a national leader in finding ways to improve public health and quality of life for all, with a focus on reducing inequities. The 26,800 sf Hub will house team-based learning classrooms, seminar rooms, collaboration spaces, advising offices and at its core, a school-wide Commons space that overlooks and engages with the exterior entry plaza.

Learn more about the project

Nestled within the 120-acre tract of the Kreher Preserve and Nature Center Environmental Education Building promotes wonder and exploration of the natural world and cultivates a sense of stewardship toward our community and environment.

“The Kreher Preserve and Nature Center (KPNC), a 120-acre forested tract owned by Auburn University’s College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment has, since its founding some three decades ago, sought to instill a regional spirit of ecological stewardship through outreach programs and public access to its trail system. KPNC’s Environmental Education Building (EEB), completed in December 2024 and designed by Boston-based practice Leers Weinzapfel Associates (LWA), furthers that mission with an expansion of programmable space within a playfully detailed mass-timber structure like a tree house.” – Matthew Marani, Architectural Record

See article here

Auburn University Kreher Preserve & Nature Center Environmental Education Building Receives Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Award in 2025 Wood Design & Building Award Program

Harvard District Energy Facility Receives 2025 Built Design Award

Williams College Davis Center Receives 2025 METROPOLIS’s Planet Positive Award – Honorable Mention

Two Leers Weinzapfel Associates Projects Selected as Finalists for The World Architecture Festival 2025 Awards

Two Leers Weinzapfel Associates Projects Recognized in the 2025 Chicago Athenaeum American Architecture Awards and International Architecture Awards

LWA Receives four AIA New England Awards

See more: https://mailchi.mp/c0f791f58dce/leersweinzapfelassociates?e=152a37ce2c

LWA’s team is feeling energized and uplifted from this year’s #AIAWLS! Thank you to the organizers for curating such a rich and vital space for dialogue and connection.

At WLS 2025, Jane Weinzapfel, Ashley Rao, Zhanina Boyadzhieva and Maryam Karime shared their personal stories, representing a broad spectrum of identities and lived experiences and ways in which they’ve built flexible values-driven careers. They were inspired by the thoughtful questions and look forward to reflecting further on all they  learned from so many bold, resilient, and empathetic women leaders in design.

“Four generations of women in architecture—a pioneering firm founder, a next-generation principal, a mid-career design leader and equity activist, and an emerging professional—come together for an honest conversation about identity, leadership, and defining success on your own terms. Each panelist will share personal insights on navigating career milestones and cultural shifts—through motherhood, licensure, health, and more. Representing a broad spectrum of identities and lived experiences, the speakers will reflect on what it means to lead with authenticity in an evolving profession. This powerful session offers real stories, practical strategies, and fresh perspective on building flexible, values-driven careers that reflect the full complexity of life and leadership.”

We are pleased to announce that Williams College Davis Center, Kreher Preserve & Nature Center, Environmental Education Building and Ohio University Chilled Water Plant #3 have all received the  Citation Award from the AIA New England 2025 Awards!

Kreher Preserve & Nature Center – Environmental Education Building: Citation Award

“The jury recognized the Environmental Education Building at Kreher Preserve & Nature Center as a delicate and thoughtful intervention that is deeply responsive to its forest setting. Organized as an informal “learning trail,” the building bends around preserved trees, with porches, corridors, and classrooms that extend directly into the landscape.

Its nearly all-wood structure; mass timber, wood siding, and native finishes; creates an architecture that feels inseparable from its environment. Passive strategies such as butterfly roofs, operable clerestories, bioswale stormwater management, and raised foundations minimize impact and reinforce the building’s role as a model for ecological stewardship. As jurors observed, the project demonstrates a beautiful use of materials and form, making the architecture itself a tool for education. Both subtle and engaging, it brings the outside in, offering children and visitors alike a joyful, nature-centered place of learning.” – AIA New England Jury 2025

We are pleased to announce that Williams College Davis Center, Kreher Preserve & Nature Center, Environmental Education Building and Ohio University Chilled Water Plant #3 have all received the  Citation Award from the AIA New England 2025 Awards!

Davis Center, Williams College: Citation Award

“The jury praised the Davis Center as a thoughtful and sculptural reinterpretation of the campus’s historic fabric, one that both honors tradition and responds to the evolving demographics of Williams College. The new addition, nestled between Rice and Jenness Houses, is respectful of scale and form while boldly introducing contemporary geometries and materials.  Charred wood cladding, folded rooflines, and transparent ground-floor spaces establish a civic presence that feels open and welcoming. The central plaza unites the ensemble of old and new, making the Center an active hub for multicultural life, reflection, and community gathering.

Equally commendable is the project’s environmental leadership. With net zero embodied and operational carbon, a deep-energy retrofit of Rice House, and the use of Red List–free materials, the Davis Center sets a strong precedent for sustainable and equitable campus architecture.

As the jury observed, the addition does not mimic the old house, but through sensitivity to form, scale, and size, it succeeds as a confident and respectful intervention. It is a project that reaffirms the role of architecture in shaping inclusive and resilient communities.” – AIA New England Jury 2025

We are pleased to announce that Williams College Davis Center, Kreher Preserve & Nature Center, Environmental Education Building and Ohio University Chilled Water Plant #3 have all received the  Citation Award from the AIA New England 2025 Awards!

Ohio University – Chilled Water Plant #3: Citation Award

“The jury commended Ohio University’s Chilled Water Plant #3 for transforming a utilitarian program into a bold and expressive work of architecture. What could have been an anonymous service box is elevated into a sculptural landmark through its copper-toned façade, perforated rooftop enclosure, and the dramatic use of glass that reveals the mechanical systems within.

The project balances form and function with clarity. By raising equipment nine feet above the floodplain, the facility demonstrates resilience to climate impacts, while its deeply recessed glazing, natural ventilation, and sound-mitigating rooftop wall ensure comfort and safety for both users and nearby neighbors. The decision to place technology on display; visible through large glazed doors and transparent facades; turns the plant into an educational and civic presence, engaging both campus and community.” – AIA New England Jury 2025

Leers Weinzapfel Associates has been recognized as a 2025 AIA New England Emerging Professional Firm! Firms are chosen for this designation for their display of outstanding commitment to developing their Emerging Professional staff.

Creating a collaborative workplace, inclusive of the diverse voices and talents of our colleagues, has been at the core of the firm since its origin in 1982.

“This program has an ability to attract and retain employees by sending a message to current employees, future employees, and other regional firms that the firm has evaluated their policies from an emerging professional lens, the firm recognizes emerging professionals at their firm, and the firm values Emerging Professionals development to sustain the future growth of their practice.” – 2025 New England AIA Components Emerging Professional Firm

For more information about the award here

LWA Principal Tom S. Chung, FAIA, LEED AP BD+C will be a panel speaker at the 2025 BSA Housing Innovation Symposium, kick starting the symposium with the first panel discussion  “What’s Blocking Bold Design? Mapping the Constraints” from 9:15–10:15 AM at the BSA Space. It is set to be an insightful discussion on Mass Timber Housing, Constraints and Opportunities.

“The Housing Innovation Symposium opens with a contextual framing of the state’s housing realities. Gail Sullivan FAIA, Paul Karakusevic, Tom Chung, FAIA, and Fatima Ali-Salaam, will delve into these critical concepts within and outside of our regional context. The panel will explore projects, processes, and policies at varying scales, from local neighborhoods to international case studies, to identify what has blocked bold design strategies and what has enabled innovation. Through these discussions, participants will gain a shared framework for thinking about design quality, social and cultural dimensions of housing, innovative building methods, regulatory structures, and financing mechanisms.” – Boston Society of Architects

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We are excited to present at the 2025 AIA Women’s Leadership Summit next week! Principals Jane Weinzapfel, FAIA and Ashley Rao, AIA, LEED AP, Phius CPHC along with Associate Zhanina Boyadzhieva, AIA and Architect Maryam Karime, AIA will weave some of their personal stories, followed by a panel discussion at “Four Generations of Women Challenging the Architecture Status Quo” at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta, Georgia on November 3-5.

“Four generations of women in architecture—a pioneering firm founder, a next-generation principal, a mid-career design leader and equity activist, and an emerging professional—come together for an honest conversation about identity, leadership, and defining success on your own terms. Each panelist will share personal insights on navigating career milestones and cultural shifts—through motherhood, licensure, health, and more. Representing a broad spectrum of identities and lived experiences, the speakers will reflect on what it means to lead with authenticity in an evolving profession. This powerful session offers real stories, practical strategies, and fresh perspective on building flexible, values-driven careers that reflect the full complexity of life and leadership.”

Learn More