Roberta Washington Named Guest Speaker for Women's History Month at African Burial Ground National Monument

Women's History Month is an annual observance in March which honors and celebrates the lives and achievements of American women throughout the history of the United States. African Burial Ground National Monument is proud to present a lecture by Harlem architect Roberta Washington entitled, A History of Black Women in Architecture on Thursday, March 28, 2013 at 1:00 p.m.

The 60-minute special program will also consist of a PowerPoint presentation, and conclude with a brief survey of the work of the presenter. There are an estimated 250 black women in practice today. This is a story of the history of professionals who are a minority within a minority and how they overcame the odds to succeed! Aspiring students of architecture and visitors in attendance will get a special opportunity to participate in a brief Question and Answer Session.

Roberta Washington, FAIA, has been principal of Roberta Washington Architects, PC since 1983. Prior to starting her own firm, Ms. Washington worked as a health facility planner and designer for various New York City architectural firms and later ran a design studio for Maputo Province in Mozambique where she designed healthcare, educational and cultural projects.

In her own firm, Roberta has designed and acted as project director for dozens of new and renovated housing projects, schools and health facilities. One of her ultimate accomplishments was the design of the African Burial Ground National Monument Visitor Center which opened to the public on February 27, 2010.

Ms. Washington is a past president of the National Organization of Minority Architects and a past chairperson of the New York State Board of Architecture. She is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. Since 2007, Washington has been a commissioner on the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. She also serves on the Advisory Board of the Beverly Hills Foundation, an organization dedicated to encouraging and recognizing the accomplishments of women in the profession.