Since 2002, ACE Los Angeles has enabled hundreds of high school students to discover the exciting potential of careers in Architecture, Construction and Engineering (ACE). Starting with 45 students and three teams, we have grown to about 300 students on 15 teams. Students in Spring 2010 came from 24 different high schools.
The scholarship program has expanded too. In the first year, scholarships were awarded to nine graduating high school seniors. In May 2010, rights were granted to 60 graduating seniors.
Because we cover a wide geographic area, we build our teams around high schools, or small clusters of high schools. We recruit mentors from nearby architectural, engineering and construction firms.
A typical team matches half a dozen professional mentors with two dozen students in grades 10 through 12. They meet after school about 16 times during the academic year.
Over 100 of our “alumni” currently are in college. By spring 2010, eighteen of these had graduated. Two have finished their post-graduate Master’s Degree programs. One has finished law school. Others are working in the design and construction professions and one of these has returned to mentor at his old high school. Several have entered the skilled construction trades.
A+DEN is a program of the Chicago Architecture Foundation, the American
Architectural Foundation, and the American Institute of Architects
