CCNY architecture student Alejandro Estevez (right) receives his HOK award from Spitzer School Chair Sean Weiss.
Alejandro Estevez, a fifth-year student in The City College of New York’s Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture is one of 10 outstanding students nationally awarded $10,000 HOK scholarships. A global design, architecture, engineering and planning firm, HOK presents the scholarships to reinforce its commitment to fostering greater diversity within the architectural profession.
The 2024 scholarship presentation marks the fourth year of the Diversity by Design program, which has consistently grown since its inception in 2021. HOK has now invested a cumulative total of $370,000 into the initiative since launching the scholarship program.
“Supporting these exceptional students is a key part of our mission to create a more inclusive and representative architectural profession,” said Ami Shah, HOK’s Atlanta-based health education practice leader and a member of the firm’s Diversity Advisory Council (DAC), which oversees the scholarship program. “By providing resources and opportunities, we want to break down barriers and empower the next generation of diverse design leaders.”
The scholarships, sponsored by HOK’s U.S. regional practices, are awarded through a competitive selection process to upper-level and graduate students enrolled in NAAB-accredited design programs.
About Alejandro Estevez
Born and raised in the Bronx, Estevez has excelled in the Spitzer School. He’s been the recipient of the CCNY AAG - Robert E. Markinson Memorial Architecture Award, the Wittes ‘66 Scholarship Fund Award, and has been on the Dean's List since January 2021. In addition, he has two models on display at the Spitzer School.
Scheduled to graduate in May 2025, he said of his future plans: “I am eager and excited to work with different site conditions, clients, building typologies, and scales. Beyond my interest in design and aesthetics, I am most passionate about using architecture to positively benefit and better represent underserved communities. My experience as a native New Yorker witnessing disparity in design on my day-to-day commute from the Bronx to Manhattan has always made me aware of a clear discrepancy between the architecture that serves Manhattan and other areas in the outer boroughs.
“This quickly became my first interest in architecture as I questioned why certain built environments deserve architecture of quality while others have to live in buildings that are quite literally on the verge of collapse. I understand that this is a very ambitious goal and this is a problem within the urban fabric that is not only a design issue but more importantly a systemic issue. My education at The City College has fostered this interest in justice through architecture and has framed a view that supplemented and supported my initial interests in the existing inequalities in the architecture of New York City."
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Emsi (now Lightcast) puts at $1.9 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers and society. At City College, more than 15,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. This year, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign, ever. The campaign, titled “Doing Remarkable Things Together” seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College mission. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Jay Mwamba
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jmwamba@ccny.cuny.edu