I spent last weekend touching up our beloved “AIA” letters, one of my last remaining tasks as your AIA Silicon Valley President. It seemed very fitting, as the nicks and scars on the styrofoam photo props were evidence of a great year—a year of freely gathering and celebrating together again! 2023 was indeed another rebuilding year for our Chapter, and I’m happy to report it’s finally feeling like old times again at AIA Silicon Valley!
The 2023 Board of Directors embarked upon this year with five key focus areas in mind. Looking back at our accomplishments, I’m incredibly proud of the work that was done to support our members this year through these main goals:
#1 FINANCIAL SUCCESS
We are grateful to our dues-paying members and to the many sponsors who stepped up throughout the year to keep our Chapter thriving. Through your generous support, we have kept our finances stable through an uncertain time…all while supporting a very ambitious agenda!
#2 ENGAGEMENT
We kicked off the year still favoring hybrid events due to poor in-person attendance. We never perfected hybrid delivery—although we really did try—but we continued to reach our members as best we could. Through the latter half of the year, we saw in-person attendance finally reaching pre-pandemic numbers. It certainly felt like old times, but with a new group of “regulars” at events. We hope to see more faces soon!
#3 DESIGN AWARDS
The Design Awards program in October was evidence of a pent up demand to recognize great architecture and design in the Silicon Valley. Through a record number of project submissions, an outstanding showing of attendees, and glowing remarks from an all-star jury, we were reminded how important it is to celebrate as a community and recognize our members for their extraordinary work.
#4 COMMUNICATIONS
Understanding that digital communications are becoming so much more important, the Chapter commissioned a complete overhaul of our website. The new site is live and ready for your perusal! We have not unlocked all of the website capabilities, and we are excited to roll out new features for our members in 2024. Stay tuned!
#5 PROGRAMS
Through the pandemic, our Chapter lost so much momentum and institutional knowledge, it felt like we were starting from scratch in many of our programs. We are regaining that momentum, and we are seeing the return of our volunteers! There’s a wonderful energy as we accomplish great things together. We are rolling into 2024 with a much-needed head start and an optimistic outlook.
It has been a pleasure serving as your AIA Silicon Valley President this year, and I want to extend my gratitude to our wonderful staff, our Board, and the volunteers who have poured their heart and soul into this organization. We hope you will join us on December 13th at our Holiday Party to celebrate this year together. And come prepared—those AIA letters will be ready for some festive photos!
Stephanie Silkwood
AIA, LEED AP BD+C, WELL AP
Principal at RMW architecture & interiors
2023 AIA Silicon Valley President
Member Spotlight: Alexandria Evans, AIA, CAW Architects
