about the DAAA
"The Directory of African American Architects is maintained as a public service to promote an awareness of who African American architects are and where they are located. The sole qualification for listing is licensure in one of the fifty US jurisdictions and their territories."
This an interim site - a snapshot of the original DAAA - secured and updated for useful consumption. Some of the previous portions (history and news) are being permanently relocated to https://NOMA.net. Other sections including the educator and landscape architects sections are being reinvented (see "Future" below).
There are still a few bits and pieces to be filled in here and the data portion will be updated once or twice a month. We might even do an F.A.Q.
History
The directory itself came together under the stewardship of Dennis A. Mann and Bradford C. Grant. They published print versions and then a web version. Their concerted endeavor garnered wide-spread recognition and even received an award from the American Institute of Architects for "Collaborative Achievement".
Until this year the University of Cincinnati was the proud and primary host of the directory. The baton has been passed to the National Organization of Minority Architects.
Founders
Bradford is a Professor of Architecture in the Department of Architecture of the College of Engineering and Architecture at Howard University, Washington DC. He has been in leadership roles at Hampton and Howard Universities as Chairperson, Director, Associate Dean and Interim Dean.
Dennis is Professor Emeritus at University of Cincinnati. He received his undergraduate degree in architecture from the University of Cincinnati and his Masters degree from the University of Pennsylvania where he studied under Louis I. Kahn.
Education has been a hallmark of both of the directory's founders and their vibrant support for NOMA has made the transition a logical and welcome one. They remain involved with the directories evolution.
Future
Not only is NOMA hosting and maintaining the original directory but it is also in the middle of plans for a broader, more detailed effort to create a data-rich resource for the entire industry. The next generation database has entered the development phase. Landscape architects, educators and authors will be added back in, as they were in the original DAAA and there will be a purposeful expansion of data areas to provide more detailed demographics about not just Black architects but the entire multicultural spectrum. This is all poised for a 2023 arrival.
What's My Number?
There has never been a numbered list in the Directory. People have made assumptions based on the number publicized on the website at the time they were licensed. That is not accurate or certain. The Directory is a self-reported tool so we receive entries anytime which means order, if we had a list, would be constantly changing because people don't always submit immediately.
Also, the directory was kept in paper files before NOMA took over management. For anyone who submitted before 2020, the directory does not have their date of initial license. We are currently soft launching a campaign to ask everyone, all 2000+, to do the online form which will allow us to have a much more robust electronic database to facilitate data crunching around many aspects of licensure.
Additionally, we do not count those who are deceased so we are occasionally decreasing the number.
The statement we usually tell people they can <<accurately>> use is: "When I was licensed, there were xxx in the Directory".