Student Scholarships

ARCHITECTURAL FORUM SCHOLARSHIPS

AIA Rhode Island Architectural Forum is pleased to announce its Fourteenth Annual Scholarship Awards Program. Scholarship funds will be credited to the winning student’s college account for the payment of tuition costs. The Scholarship Award committee of the AIA Rhode Island Architectural Forum reviews applications and determines how many scholarships to award and in what amount. 

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

To be eligible applicants must be either:

  • Enrolled in a NAAB-accredited undergraduate or graduate architecture program in Rhode Island, or
  • A Rhode Island resident enrolled in a NAAB-accredited undergraduate or graduate architecture program outside of
    Rhode Island

Applicants must be returning to continue their professional studies in the 2023 – 2024 academic year. Prior applicants and recipients are encouraged to apply.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

Applicants must submit:

  • Letter of intent including a narrative describing your current academic status and a statement of how receiving a
    scholarship would further your academic ambitions (1 page)
  • Portfolio, in PDF format, of no more than six (6) pages including any illustrative material that is representative of your
    design experience and interests
  • Letter of recommendation written by a faculty member of the school at which you are currently enrolled or a professional
    reference
  • Letter of eligibility for financial aid including extent of need from the financial aid office of the school in which you are
    currently enrolled

In order to be considered, applicants must include all the required materials with their application. Submissions should be sent via
e-mail as a single PDF and be no larger than 15MB. Please include your name and contact information on each page. Electronic
links to files will not be accepted.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Applicants will be considered for one of the following scholarships (note that applicants do not need to select which scholarship they are applying to, but instead will automatically be considered for all scholarships offered): 

  • The Norton E. Salk Scholarship for Design Excellence
  • DF Pray Foundation Scholarship
  • AIA Architecture Scholarship

APPLY TODAY!
For more information on applying for a scholarship, view our application requirements. 

APPLICATION DEADLINE AND AWARD

Applications must be e-mailed by Friday, August 25, 2023 at 11:59pm

Applicants will be notified of decisions by September 5, 2023.

Send all application materials to aiariforum@gmail.com with the subject line: Application Forum Scholarship Application

CONTACT
Questions?
Email aiariforum@gmail.com


The Norton E. Salk Scholarship for Design Excellence

Norton E. Salk, AIA was a doer throughout his lifetime. A lifelong Rhode Island resident, he graduated from Classical High School, attended Brown University for one year, joined the U.S. Army Corps, and served in the Corps of Engineers. While in the Corps, he spent time in Italy and developed a great admiration of and passion for classical architecture. It led, following his return to the states and graduation from the University of Michigan, to a 55-year career as an architect.

Mr. Salk designed schools, nursing homes, shopping centers, office buildings, and private residences, including the A.T. Cross Headquarters, Southern New England School of Law, Western Hills Middle School, and a wing of the Rhode Island Veterans’ Home. The last five years of his practice were devoted primarily to pro bono work, including design of the Jewish War Veterans’ Memorial and consulting to Sophia Academy.

His children note that Mr. Salk also shared his enthusiasm for the profession by devoting time to professional organizations, including serving as president of the Rhode Island chapter of the Construction Specifications Institute, and by mentoring architectural students, including his daughter.

“I remember visiting projects and seeing his work. I was in awe,” she shares, noting that she especially enjoyed working with him. “When faced with a challenging project, my father said to me, ‘Design is a problem waiting to be solved.’”

Norton E. Salk, AIA will continue to nurture architecture students through this scholarship fund, designated for the AIA Rhode Island Architectural Forum and to be used to assist students majoring in architecture at accredited Rhode Island schools.