Marshall Purnell (born June 8, 1950) is a prominent
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
and 2008 president of the
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...
Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, Marshall Purnell is the second son of the late Lelia (Givens) Purnell (1922-2016) and the late long-time professional jazz saxophonist Curtis Purnell (1921–2006). He attended Ottawa Hills High School where he played point guard on its state high school championship-winning basketball team. Though he was recruited by the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
, he chose not to pursue sports. Inspired by James Chaffers, he instead pursued and earned a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
in
Architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
&
Urban Planning
Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...
, a
Master of Architecture
The “Master of Architecture”(M.Arch or MArch) or a “Bachelor of Architecture” is a professional degree in architecture, qualifying the graduate to move through the various stages of professional accreditation (internship, exams) that res ...
from the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
in
Ann Arbor
Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...
.
Career
After earning his degree, Purnell taught design until 1973 at the
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...
. Following that, he joined the
American Institute of Architecture
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to sup ...
in 1974, working as an executive in the headquarters in Washington, DC until 1978.
In the summer of 1978, four months prior to Purnell leaving his executive position,
Paul S. Devrouax
Paul S. Devrouax (October 4, 1942—March 22, 2010), was an American architect. He founded the architectural design firm of Devrouax+Purnell, in Washington, D.C..
He helped design the Capital One Arena, Verizon Center, Nationals Park, the Walter ...
, a well-esteemed architect with an already established firm proposed to Purnell, a partnership that would later be known as the firm Devrouax and Purnell Architects and Planners, PC. He served as the Design Principal of the firm for thirty-five years until the death of the co-founder,
Paul S. Devrouax
Paul S. Devrouax (October 4, 1942—March 22, 2010), was an American architect. He founded the architectural design firm of Devrouax+Purnell, in Washington, D.C..
He helped design the Capital One Arena, Verizon Center, Nationals Park, the Walter ...
in 2010.
Purnell was the president of the
National Organization of Minority Architects
The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) is a professional organization for individuals practicing architecture and allied professionals to advance justice and equity in communities of color.
History
In 1968, activist and executiv ...
in 1985 and 1986. In 1994, he served as president of the College of Architecture and Planning Alumni Association Board of Governors and was a member of the University of Michigan Alumni Association Executive Committee from 1996 to 2003.
In 2006, Marshall was elected as the first African American architect to serve as the national president on the
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...
in 150 years; an organization that did not allow membership of African Americans until 1923. His inauguration marked a significant step to diversifying the fields of Architecture and Design.
In 2007, he received the University of Michigan Distinguished Service Award and Michigan’s College of Architecture Service Award whereupon he presented the Commencement Address. In 2009, he received an honorary Doctorate of Architecture from the
Boston Architectural College
Boston Architectural College, also known as The BAC, is New England's largest private college of spatial design. It offers first-professional bachelor's and master's degrees in architecture, interior architecture, landscape architecture, and ...
.
He has lectured extensively abroad including locations such as Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Korea, and Mexico. In the US, he has lectured at the University of Maryland, the University of Michigan, the University of Pennsylvania, University of Southern California, University of Virginia, Howard, Florida A&M, Morgan State, Montana State, Prairie View, Tuskegee, and Yale University. Mr. Purnell has testified before Congress on numerous occasions and been interviewed and quoted by professional magazines and newspapers such as: Architectural Record, Building Design and Construction, Interiors, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal. In 2014, Purnell joined the College of Design at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He took the position of Professor of the Practice, Teaching Professional Practice, Design Studios, IDP Coordinator, AIAT Board Member, AIAS representative and Advisory Board Coordinator.
Notable work
As the Design Principal of Devrouax & Purnell Architects Planners, some firm projects include:
* the $850 million
Washington Convention Center
The Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. was a convention center located one block southwest at 909 H Street NW, occupying the city block bounded by New York Avenue, 9th Street, H Street, and 11th Street.Washington Nationals Baseball Park
* the Washington NBA and NHL venue Verizon Center
* PEPCO Energy’s corporate headquarters
* FreddieMac corporate Headquarters
* the
Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is a national memorial located in West Potomac Park next to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It covers and includes the ''Stone of Hope'', a granite statue of Civil Rights Movement le ...
* several projects for the
Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA ), commonly referred to as Metro, is a tri-jurisdictional government agency that operates transit service in the Washington metropolitan area. WMATA was created by the United States Con ...
* a New Town in Turkey
* modernization projects at U.S. Embassies in Moscow and the former Yugoslavia
* Cabinet drawing updates for 86 different Ambassadorial Residences worldwide
* a marina, restaurant, luxury housing, and golf course in the Bahamas
* many mix-use residential, institutional, educational, industrial, transportation, and commercial projects on both the east and west coasts.Devrouax & Purnell partners /ref>
Awards & affiliations
*
Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African-American fraternity. The fraternity was founded on November 17, 1911, by three Howard University juniors Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Coleman, and their faculty advi ...
fraternity (1969)
* Member, US Delegation: UNESCO Conference on the Environment, (1977), Tbilisi, Georgia
* Organizer: AE Federal Programs Conference, Miami Beach, FL (1975), COFPAES
* Organizer: AE Federal Programs Conference, San Francisco, CA (1976), COFPAES
* National Organization of Minority Architects (Vice President 1984, Treasurer 1982-1984)
* American Institute of Architects Housing Committee (1985)
* National Organization of Minority Architects, NOMAC, (President 1985 & 1986) National Organization of Minority Architects Counsel
* American Institute of Architects Scholarship Committee (Chairman 1986)
* DC/AIA Education Committee (1986)
* United Way Campaign, District of Columbia (Campaign Chairman 1986, 1991)
* The American Institute of Architects, AIA (President 2008, Fellow 1991),
* The American Institute of Architects Fellow (1991),
* United States Presidential Design Awards Jury (Member 1992)
* University of Michigan College of Architecture & Planning Alumni Board (President 1994)
* University of Michigan Alumni Board (Executive Committee 1997)
* Studio Theatre (Vice Chairman 1998)
* DC/ AIA Treasurer (2001)
* DC/AIA Chairman, Fellows Committee (2002)
* DC/ AIA Vice President (2002)
* The American Institute of Architects, DC Chapter, AIA/DC (President 2003)
* City First Bank of DC (Chairman 2003- 2006)
* Grand Rapids Michigan Sports Hall of Fame (2004, Basketball)
* The American Institute of Architects National Design Award (2006)
* Commencement Address University of Michigan College of Architecture (2007)
* University of Michigan Distinguished Alumni Service Award (2007)
* University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture & Planning Distinguished Service Award (2007)
* Commencement Address Boston Architectural College (2007)
* Japan Institute of Architects, JIA (2008)
* Korean Institute of Registered Architects, KIRA (2008)
* Mexican Federation of Architects, MFA (2008)
* Royal Architectural Institute of Australia, RAIA (2008)
* Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, RAIC (2008)
* Honorary Doctorate of Architecture: Boston Architectural College (2009)
* The American Institute of Architects Potomac Valley Chapter Paul Kea Medal (2010)
* The American Institute of Architects DC Chapter Centennial Medal (2012)
* The American Institute of Architects, Legacy Foundation (President 2009-2012)
* Washington, DC Hall of Fame (2013, Science and Technology)
Publications
* M. Purnell, (1975) “The Federal Market Place: Are you Prepared?” (American Institute of Architects)
* M. Purnell, L. Spiller (1976), (1978) “A Directory of Minority Architectural and Engineering Firms” (American Institute of Architects, American Consulting Engineers Council)