{"id":371200,"date":"2026-10-12T18:58:20","date_gmt":"2026-10-12T18:58:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/371200\/"},"modified":"2026-10-12T18:58:20","modified_gmt":"2026-10-12T18:58:20","slug":"building-connections-architecture-students-find-community-through-mentorship-at-city-tech-brooklyn-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/371200\/","title":{"rendered":"Building connections: Architecture students find community through mentorship at City Tech \u2022 Brooklyn Paper"},"content":{"rendered":"

It all started when a student raised his hand after being asked what he thought were issues in architecture. \u201cLoneliness,\u201d he said. On Oct. 6, students crowded into a large space in Downtown Brooklyn, finding community, connection and career guidance.<\/p>\n

Nearly 100 architecture students recently met their mentors through a nine-year-old program designed to help them build a career and a life, finding inspiration as well as education from people in the profession.<\/p>\n

Architecture students from four schools and their mentors united last week at New York City College of Technology\u2019s Voorhees Hall, at 186 Jay St., forming relationships and finding resources.<\/p>\n

The program, launched by the Architectural League of New York, is one of New York City\u2019s more notable examples of expanding the boundaries of education.<\/p>\n

Students came from City Tech, Kean University\u2019s Michael Graves College of Architectural Design, City College\u2019s Spitzer School of Architecture and the New Jersey Institute of Technology\u2019s Hillier College of Architecture and Design.<\/p>\n

The Architectural League of New York includes designers, landscape architects, architects, artists and academics.<\/p>\n

There are 12 architecture programs in New York City, including two public schools, City College and City Tech, both of which participate in the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cMentors come from all over the place,\u201d Architectural League Executive Director Jacob Moore said. \u201cPeople who are seniors at big firms, who run their own offices, people just out of school who want to pay it forward, young architects who have been mentees.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mentors with diverse backgrounds, experiences and ethnicities are matched with a diverse group of students who find role models, resources and relationships.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur students are from all over the world,\u201d said Ting Chin, who leads City Tech\u2019s architecture school. \u201cI think we reflect the demographics of New York City.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"City Tech Interim President Milton Santiago spoke about the college\u2019s growing architecture program and its emphasis on preparing students to make an impact on their communities.Photo by Claude Solnik<\/p>\n

City Tech Interim President Milton Santiago said the school\u2019s architecture program attracts people who want to build a life, a career and a city.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s growing,\u201d he said of the 900-person program. \u201cMost of our students live in urban environments. They want to contribute to the environment where they live and work and make an impact on their communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mentoring mandate<\/p>\n

Outgoing City Tech architecture Chair Sanjive Vaidya said the program was born out of one raised hand and a realization that followed a question about students\u2019 concerns.<\/p>\n

\u201cA student raised his hand and said, \u2018We feel really lonely,\u2019\u201d Vaidya said. \u201cStudying architecture is a lonely enterprise. All of us have been late night in studios, headphones plugged in, working on a project.\u201d<\/p>\n

When he surveyed students, Vaidya found that few, if any, knew architects, had architects in their families or had visited an architecture firm.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I asked if they knew someone in the building industry, then I got some positives,\u201d Vaidya said. \u201cSome had family in construction.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked about famous architects in film and television who might inspire students, Vaidya said the media offers few examples.<\/p>\n

Aside from the father in \u201cThe Brady Bunch\u201d and a Simon and Garfunkel song about Frank Lloyd Wright, architects may build the world, but they are largely absent from television and film. Inspiration seems to flow instead from what students see around them.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re looking at it,\u201d Chin said of buildings inspiring students, \u201cseeing it, using it every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zoe Fruchter, senior program manager at the Architectural League, said \u201ceach pair represents its own opportunity for connection and enrichment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe mentees are learning not only in school, but the norms of professional non- academic communication,\u201d Fruchter said. \u201cA lot of them have jobs, families, duties. Begin with kindness. Begin with understanding.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Marianela D\u2019Aprile, the Architectural League of New York\u2019s mentoring director, spoke about the organization\u2019s nearly decade-long program connecting architecture students with professionals in the field.Photo by Claude Solnik<\/p>\n

Mentors said it is easy for students to disappear into their studies, losing sight of the need to socialize and build bonds with the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s easy to go into a rabbit hole. I tend to focus on the journey students are having now,\u201d Tom Chou, a mentor, said. \u201cWe both have things to learn from each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marianela D\u2019Aprile, the league\u2019s mentoring director, said the organization views these connections as a key part of its mission.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe League has been doing this for almost a decade,\u201d D\u2019Aprile said. \u201cIt\u2019s a really important program for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Building relationships<\/p>\n

Chou said electronic communication makes it easier to stay in touch between in-person meetings.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe texted each other a lot,\u201d Chou said. \u201cThat\u2019s the primary mode of communication. It felt like a friendship more than mentorship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others said it is important to get over the fear of embarrassment to create opportunities to learn.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was hesitant at first to ask those silly questions. Once we set up weekly Zoom meetings \u2026 I got comfortable,\u201d said Isus Marsho, an undergraduate student at Michael Graves College of Architectural Design. \u201cAsk those silly questions. They\u2019re not silly, things you\u2019re learning the first time. Just find the joy in being into architecture and designing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flaminia Cedeno, a third-year City Tech student, spoke with her mentor, Evelyn Hinojosa, who works in store design for Dior.<\/p>\n

\u201cI came into architecture, because I\u2019m mostly interested in art and I\u2019m really good at math,\u201d Cedeno said. \u201cI\u2019m really good at designing and creating. Why not go into architecture?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hinojosa said they met virtually before meeting in person, as she hoped to provide Cedeno with a sounding board and support.<\/p>\n

\u201cI invited her to a [remote] meeting before orientation to meet and have good one and one time,\u201d Hinojosa said.<\/p>\n

\"\"Flaminia Cedeno, a third-year City Tech architecture student, stands with her mentor, Evelyn Hinojosa, who works in store design for Dior. The two connected through the Architectural League of New York\u2019s mentorship program, which pairs students with industry professionals to offer career guidance and support.Photo by Claude Solnik<\/p>\n

Hinojosa told Cedeno about her job, and Cedeno appeared encouraged by her mentor\u2019s enthusiasm.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a really cool job. You\u2019re in between art and architecture and fashion,\u201d Hinojosa said of her work, which illustrates the variety of career paths available to architecture students. \u201cI came back to New York. I\u2019m from New York. I was recruited to work for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

If the program is designed to build relationships, it is not designed to build r\u00e9sum\u00e9s through internships with mentors.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the job market is difficult, especially for entry level jobs,\u201d Chin said, noting that the challenges make mentoring even more important. \u201cWe\u2019re probably affected to some degree by AI.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said artificial intelligence can help with rendering and image-making, but jobs remain available at small and large companies, as well as in related fields.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a long process. You need level of education, hours working for another architect, and you have to pass multiple exams,\u201d Chin said of becoming a licensed architect. \u201cYou can be a designer at a firm. There are all these related professions you can enter.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said fa\u00e7ade design, sustainability, building information modeling and many other specialties can provide career opportunities.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t know what you\u2019ll end up doing. I never dreamed I would end up doing the amount of detailing I\u2019m doing,\u201d said Alicia Niebrzydowski, a mentor who works at WDP Consulting Engineers. \u201cI was a strictly theoretical girl in school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Founded in 1881, the league has changed as the world has changed, but some things remain the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing that has remained consistent is a commitment to creating space where designers and architects can learn from one another,\u201d D\u2019Aprile said. \u201cThink big, dream big, so we can shape the way you work today, but also the future of the profession.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It all started when a student raised his hand after being asked what he thought were issues in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":371201,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[5462,136871,70032,136872,25889,3076,67,66336,9,24,11,10,12,370],"class_list":["post-371200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-architecture","tag-architecture-students","tag-career-development","tag-city-tech","tag-college-students","tag-downtown-brooklyn","tag-education","tag-mentorship","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-news","tag-news","tag-newsletter"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=371200"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371200\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/371201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=371200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=371200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=371200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}