The BSA today named six esteemed jurors to the Design Jury for the 2024 BSA Design Awards. With diverse perspectives and geographic roots across the United States, these professionals will carefully evaluate submissions in all categories for the winning entries and levels of recognition that will be announced at the annual BSA Awards gala in March 2025.

The 2024 Design Jury consists of:

• Allison Anderson, FAIA, founding principal of Unabridged Architecture
• Andrew Bernheimer, FAIA, architect and Associate Professor of Architecture at the Parsons School of Design
• Shannon Gathings, AIA NOMA, architect at Duvall Decker Architects
• Douglas Ito, FAIA, managing member of SMR Architects
• Maija Kreishman, AIA IIDA, Managing Principal at Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
• Chandra Robinson, Principal, Lever Architecture

Professional Biographies of the 2024 Design Jury

Allison Anderson, FAIA is the founding principal of Unabridged Architecture, a firm recognized for incorporating sustainability, climate change adaptation, and resilience across a wide variety of projects. Allison was the first LEED Accredited Professional in Mississippi, is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, and served for three years on the AIA Committee on Climate Action and Design Excellence. Allison is the author of “Adapting to Climate-Sensitive Hazards through Architecture” for the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Natural Hazard Science and the AIA Resilient Project Process Guide. She is a contributing author for the AIA Framework for Design Excellence (2023 update), Architect’s Guide to Business Continuity, and AIA Climate Action Business Playbook.

Andrew Bernheimer, FAIA is a Brooklyn-based architect and Associate Professor of Architecture at the Parsons School of Design. Bernheimer leads an eponymous firm responsible for a wide variety of residential, civic, and cultural projects, including new multi-unit affordable housing developments across the five boroughs of New York City as well as award-winning private residences in the northeast region. The studio is also currently the only private architectural firm in the United States with unionized labor.

Bernheimer edited Timber in the City, a book featuring innovative practices in wood construction published by ORO Editions, and co-edited the collection Fairy Tale Architecture (ORO Editions, 2020) with Kate Bernheimer. The latter is a collection of work by Bernheimer's own practice and several other architectural practices based at Places Journal, investigating storytelling, narrative image-making, and the architectural space of literature. In 2018 Bernheimer was elevated to the College of Fellows in the American Institute of Architects. In 2023 the AIA New York City Chapter awarded him their Medal of Honor recognizing "distinguished work and high professional standing."

Previously, Bernheimer was a founding partner of the award-winning firm Della Valle Bernheimer.

Shannon Gathings, AIA NOMA is an architect at Duvall Decker Architects in Jackson, Mississippi. She is a leader in and out of the studio and is a skilled project manager and designer. Shannon has led some of the firm’s most successful projects, including the Reserves at Gray Park, which was recently recognized in The State of Housing Design by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, as well as by the 2022 Architizer A+ Award for best affordable housing, and the renovation of Operation Shoestring’s Ellen Harris Center, recipient of a 2023 AIA Mississippi Honor Award. She is a teacher in the studio, helping her peers as they grow and develop. She has an unwavering passion for architecture and its role in making communities healthier.

Shannon was recently awarded the 2023 AIA Young Architects Award for her leadership in design and service to the profession. Shannon’s service to AIA began at the state level, where her roles have included Communications Director, Associate Director, member of the Board of Directors, and rank Executive Committee positions, leading to service as the 2018 AIA Mississippi President. Shannon has served as the Regional Associate Director of AIA Gulf States, the 2020 Strategic Council Associate Representative, and the 2021 Associate Director for the AIA National Board of Directors. Shannon currently serves as a S|ARC Advisory Board member for her alma mater, Mississippi State University.

Douglas Ito, FAIA is a managing member of SMR Architects in Seattle, Washington. He is the past president of AIA Washington Council and has served on numerous committees for both AIA Washington Council and AIA Seattle. Douglas's commitment to design excellence is reflected in the accolades his projects have received. Honors include the 2020 AIA/HUD Secretary's Housing Accessibility - Alan J. Rothman Award for Plymouth on First Hill, and the 2021 Urban Land Institute's Jack Kemp Excellence in Affordable and Workforce Housing Chairman's Award for Arlington Drive Youth Campus

Douglas is a dedicated advocate for affordable housing, working tirelessly at both the local and state levels, with a successful history of working on affordable and supportive multi-family housing developments for individuals and families. Throughout his career, he has contributed to the creation of over 2,800 units of affordable housing, including more than 1,300 units specifically dedicated to permanent supportive housing.

For his contributions to affordable housing and designing projects confronting the racial, social, and political injustices that continue to pervade society, Douglas was selected as the 2024 winner of the AIA’s Whitney M. Young Jr. Award.

Maija Kreishman, AIA IIDA is Managing Principal at Michael Hsu Office of Architecture (MHOA), where she has been a critical member of the firm since 2007. In addition to managing a broad range of architecture and interior projects, Maija oversees strategic visioning, studio culture, operations, marketing, and business development.

MHOA employs 80 team members across studios in Austin and Houston, as well as staff in Dallas, New York, Denver, Philadelphia, Louisville, and Boston. The work of MHOA is rooted in hospitality and covers a range of expertise, such as large mixed-use developments, adaptive reuse projects, public realm design, single family homes, hotels, restaurants, retail spaces, workspaces, bespoke furniture design, and branding and visual identity.

MHOA is a nationally award-winning firm, including AN Interior’s Top Design firms of 2022 and AIA Austin Firm of the Year. The firm has received numerous design awards from the Texas Society of Architects, AIA Los Angeles, IIDA, Hospitality Design, and Dezeen, among others. MHOA’s work has been featured in Wallpaper, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Dwell, Conde Nast, Architectural Digest, Texas Architect, Texas Monthly, Garden and Gun, Metropolis, Interior Design, Dezeen, and numerous other publications. Maija holds a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia and a master’s in architecture from The University of Texas at Austin, where she has also served as a guest lecturer. She is an active participant in AIA Women in Architecture and has served on countless design juries for AIA chapters, and notable publications such as FRAME. She has spoken on panels at a variety of conferences, including Hospitality Design, Texas Society of Architects, SEGD, and more. She has been a guest on distinguished podcasts such as DesignED, SoHo House Member podcast, and Monograph, among others.

Chandra Robinson brings 16 years of experience as a leader in people-centered sustainable design. Chandra recently completed a LEED Platinum campus for Meyer Memorial Trust and is currently working with communities on transformative designs for affordable housing, museums, and libraries. She is passionate about creating beautiful spaces that are accessible for everyone and enjoys working closely with clients to create designs that are expressive of their vision and values. Chandra is a member of the Portland Design Commission, a Founder of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) Portland Charitable Foundation, and on the advisory board of Hip Hop Architecture Camp internship program.