September 12, 2022
2022 APDesign graduate earns ARCC/King Student Medal for Excellence
Each year, one outstanding graduating student from the Kansas State University College of Architecture, Planning & Design receives the ARCC King Medal. The 2022 recipient is Xing Huang, Master of Landscape Architecture. Huang is nominated by her major professor, Howard Hahn, associate professor of landscape architecture.
The Architectural Research Centers Consortium, or ARCC, offers this award in honor of the late Johnathan King, a co-founder and first president of the organization; each member college is privileged to give this award annually to a student in recognition of research excellence in architecture and environmental design.
Graduating students may be nominated by their major professors and each department follows its own process for selecting nominees. Including Huang, four graduating students were nominated for their research:
- Darianne Conley, Olathe, Master of Interior Architecture & Product Design, furniture focus, "Kanga."
- Abby Mason, Wichita, Master of Regional & Community Planning, "School attendance zones as a method for promoting educational equity."
- Joel Burford, Wichita, Master of Interior Architecture & Product Design, "Music as an Integrated Spatial Component in Early Education Facilities."
- Xing Huang, Master of Landscape Architecture, "Creekfront activation: strategies for linear spaces and nature-based activities along Wildcat Creek."
The nominees' research materials were evaluated by a jury of faculty researchers from across the university.
The jury noted it was difficult to select just one medalist due to the diverse, creative work of each nominee. However, Huang's work stood out and was awarded for its relevance to other communities developing waterfront access in flood-prone areas. The jury noted: "Well-developed designs for two parks were proposed based on the criteria developed in the thesis ... Nicely laid out plan and implementation process that can be generalized easily to any creekfront activation project … Excellent and thorough literature review with relevant examples of what others have done in the past. Excellent review of issues with developing creekfront access."
More information about the King Medal is available at arcc-arch.org/king-student-medal/.