The Delbert Highlands Travel Fellowship supports Carnegie Mellon Architecture alumni in the study of collections belonging to locales to promote the professional development of awardees and contribute to the richness of our surroundings.
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Carnegie Mellon Architecture is currently accepting applications for the 2026 award. Applications are due on Friday, October 31, 2025 at 11:59pm ET. Submit your application at the link below.
Mission
The Fellowship is named in honor of Professor Delbert Highlands, who taught courses in architectural design, design theory and architectural history from the 1960s through the first decade of this century. He has been widely recognized as a seminal teacher whose skill and understanding enriched the educations of generations of students.
Professor Highlands emphasized the “individual,” the “particular” and the “local” in his teaching. His courses were grounded in authoritative scholarship and meticulously presented fundamentals, but always went further by asking students to think of “this time,” “this place” and this “occupancy.” His teaching presented prospects for a life of work that were inspiring and that would always present fresh challenges to learn more, go deeper and design buildings that truly engage our humanity. He was a key influence in the lives of hundreds of graduates of the school.
In keeping with Professor Highlands’ thinking and contributions to the school, the Fellowship supports the study of collections belonging to locales. There are perhaps endless possibilities: from the frescoes of a remote town to the building vernacular of a whole province, to many options that have not yet been thought of. The common denominators will be the local and the particular.
The Fellowship is intended to directly support the professional development of individual awardees to contribute to the richness of our surroundings.
Evaluation Criteria
To be considered for the Fellowship, applicants must submit a one- to two-page project proposal that includes a proposed travel budget. The travel budget must include funds to travel to Pittsburgh and deliver a presentation to the school. Images can be included in the proposal. Proposals must not exceed two (2) pages in length (8.5"x11" paper size). The proposed travel must be completed in the year the award is received or slightly beyond. The proposal should be uploaded as a PDF document and must not include the applicant’s name or other identifying information, due to the blind review process.
Upon completion of the fellowship, the recipient is required to report their findings, deliver a presentation to the school, and submit their materials to the fellowship archive. The report can take different forms depending on the recipient and their subject matter. The committee grants latitude to the ways in which awardees communicate the results of their travel. Anticipated formats include lectures, seminars and exhibitions.
The jury conducts a blind review process and selects a winner and an alternate based on the merit of the submitted applications.
2024 Jury: Doug Cooper, faculty and muralist; Gerard Damiani, faculty and practitioner; Daniel Garber, FAIA, practicing architect (B.Arch ‘79); Sheldon Goettel, retired practitioner (B.Arch ‘79); Can Tiryaki, practitioner and former Highlands awardee (B.Arch ‘98); Heather Young, practicing architect
2024 Award Amount: $12,000
Eligibility & Schedule
The Fellowship is open to School of Architecture alumni. Students in the final year of their studies may apply if they will graduate by the time they receive the fellowship. Recipients cannot be enrolled in an educational institution during the travel period. Faculty and employees of CMU, former Fellowship recipients, and members of the founding committee are not eligible.
Carnegie Mellon Architecture is currently accepting applications for the 2026 award. Applications are due on Friday, October 31, 2025 at 11:59pm ET.
Award Recipients
- 2024: Susie Kim (B.Arch ‘23), Proposal: Hiroshima as Tabular Rasa: a new modern urban ethos in response to crisis and uncertainty
- 2022: Carter Nelson (B.Arch '17), Proposal: Dovecotes of Tinos
- 2020: Michael Baker (B.Arch ‘05), Proposal: The Churches of Chiloé and the Jesuit “Circular Mission”
- 2018: Dan Burdzy (B.Arch ‘13), Proposal: The Value of Junk: Adventure Playgrounds of London and Berlin
- 2016: Louisa Jáuregui (B.Arch '09), Proposal: A German Paradigm for Reexamining Residual Urban Spaces
- 2014: Matthew Scarlett (B.Arch '08), Proposal: Asmara: A Case for the City in the City
- 2012: William Riehm (B.Arch '94), Proposal: Inland Gambian Preservation: A Case Study and Travel Narrative
- 2010: Can Tiryaki (B.Arch '98), Proposal: Transitions in Religious Architecture in Asia Minor