Annual Awards Ceremony Honors CADC Community
The College of Architecture, Design and Construction (CADC) recognized excellence, leadership and academic contributions during its annual awards ceremony held on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
The event brought together award recipients, faculty, staff, alumni, students and guests to celebrate the achievements of the CADC community.
Outstanding undergraduate students were named in each of the college’s disciplines:
- Ethan Edwards (Architecture)
- Allison Ayers (Building Science)
- India Joiner (Environmental Design)
- Carly DeSimone (Graphic Design)
- Abbey Hudson (Industrial Design)
- Reyna Foslien (Interior Architecture)
- Abby Garner (Landscape Architecture)
Graduate student honors were awarded to the following:
- Imran Jebarah (Master of Building Construction)
- R. Mark Bratton (Executive Graduate Certificates in Building Construction)
- Sabrina LaFaye (Master of Industrial Design)
- Cristina Campos Perez (Master of Landscape Architecture)
- Irfan Anwar (Ph.D. in Building Construction)
The CADC also recognized Madison Champion, Communications Manager and Lead Designer, as Employee of the Year for her outstanding support and service to the college.
In addition to student and staff recognitions, each of the CADC’s three schools presented awards for exceptional teaching and service.
The School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture presented the Behzad Nakhjavan Award for Excellence in Teaching to Sarah Coleman, an Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture, while John S. Kush, an ecology research fellow in the College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment whose expertise has been invaluable to the Landscape Architecture program, received the school’s Distinguished Service Award.
The McWhorter School of Building Science named Senior Lecturer Bob Muir as its Outstanding Teaching Award recipient and Cayden Marsh ‘23, a Senior Project Manager for Evergreen Siteworks, as its Distinguished Service Award honoree.
The School of Industrial and Graphic Design presented its Outstanding Teaching Award to Mario F. Bocanegra Martinez, Assistant Professor of Graphic Design, and the Award for Distinguished Service to Elise Thomason ’00, a designer, artists and member of the school’s advisory council.
This year, the College also presented five new awards to recognize the outstanding work of the faculty and staff. Architecture Assistant Professors Cait McCarthy and Jordan Young jointly received the Innovation in Creative Work Award, while Environmental Design Assistant Professor Eilís Finnegan and Industrial Design Associate Professor Verena Paepcke-Hjeltness were each awarded a Teaching Innovation & Impact Award.
Chair of Architecture and Associate Professor Gorham Bird, Building Science Professor Junshan Liu, and Graphic Design Associate Professor David Smith were recognized with the Seed Grant Development & Impact Award for their work on the Realizing Rosenwald Initiative. The faculty and staff of SIGD received the new Dean’s Outstanding Collaboration Award for the Kaleidoscope: Auburn Design Show, while Landscape Architecture Undergraduate Chair and Associate Professor Rob Holmes was honored with the Dean’s Outstanding Leadership & Mentorship Award.
“These awards reflect the breadth and depth of work across this college—through teaching, research, making and leadership—and demonstrates what defines the CADC: disciplines working side by side, advancing ideas into action, educating future leaders in architecture, design and construction and shaping our shared world,” said CADC Dean Dawn Finley.