APLA Faculty Leading the Charge on Energy-Efficient Design

His research focuses on deep energy retrofits for existing buildings, particularly multi-family housing, aiming to make them net-zero energy.

“The approach includes a comprehensive suite of interventions to improve insulation and integrate renewable energy,” said Shanks, who received a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Design Studies and Economics from New York University in 2003, followed by a Master of Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design in 2009.

He has brought his passion for sustainable architecture to Alabama, working with public housing authorities whose properties face the threat of demolition due to years of underinvestment and neglect. He’s helping them explore deep energy retrofits to save these buildings from demolition while reducing the cost burden on low-income residents.

Shanks taught a seminar last year titled Energiesprong Alabama, inspired by the Netherlands’ Energiesprong program, and the work will be presented at the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture’s 2025 Conference in March.

He is on a mission to shift the perception of architects from designers of new structures to essential contributors in the repair and rejuvenation of existing buildings.

“I’ve been researching biobased construction materials for retrofits, specifically focusing on a mass timber CLT-insulated overclad façade system,” said Shanks, who was an architect for Gluckman Mayner Architects from 2012–2014 and technical designer for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill from 2010–2012. “This system could help retrofit existing buildings to improve their energy efficiency. I’ve submitted a proposal to the U.S. Department of Energy to prototype this overclad panel system.”

He also collaborates with colleagues in the College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment, including Soledad Peresin of the Sustainable Biomaterials Lab and Brian Via of the Forest Products Development Center. Together with colleagues in the McWhorter School of Building Science, the team’s proposal, “Building Tomorrow,” was awarded a grant from the Alabama Research and Development Enhancement Fund (ARDEF) to develop biobased construction materials for a sustainable future.

Shanks’ work is currently featured in SHOWCASE 2025, on display at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. The exhibit includes photo composite renderings from an unbuilt project in Cazenovia, New York, focused on designing a new enclosure for an existing Depression-era hydroelectric water wheel in disrepair. The project earned Shanks a Merit Award from the American Institute of Architects New York State Chapter.

No stranger to teaching, Shanks previously held a position as an Assistant Professor at the Syracuse University School of Architecture. At Auburn, he teaches Design Studio 7 and thesis research for fifth-year Architecture students in the fall, and thesis design and an elective seminar on Biogenic Building Blocks in the spring.

“I enjoy teaching students to see there are many ways to use their talent,” he said. “Industries and opportunities continue to evolve.”