Adèle Naudé Santos is a South African-born American architect and urban designer focused on low-income housing, campus architecture, and socially conscious design. She is the principal architect of Santos Prescott and Associates, based in San Francisco and Somerville, Massachusetts. She served as the Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning at

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

from 2003 to 2014. She became a Fellow of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

in 1996.

Early life

Born in South Africa, Santos holds an architectural degree from the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...

and the

Architectural Association The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest private school of architecture in the UK. The AA hosts exhibitions, lectures, symposia and publications. History The Architectura ...

in London, a Masters of Architecture in Urban Design from

Harvard Graduate School of Design The Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) is the graduate school of design at Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It offers master's and doctoral programs in architecture, landscape architecture, urba ...

, and a Masters of City Planning from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. Some of her early work included being part of the design team who worked on

Euston Station Euston railway station ( ; or London Euston) is a major London station group, central London railway terminus and Euston tube station, connected London Underground station managed by Network Rail in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sout ...

in London and work on a low-income housing project in Paris. She served as a project architect in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

for

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 28 to October 29, 1967. It was a category one world's fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most s ...

Academic career

Her academic career includes positions at

MIT School of Architecture and Planning The MIT School of Architecture and Planning (MIT SAP, stylized as SA+P) is one of the five schools of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1865 by William Robert Ware, the school offered the first ar ...

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

University of California Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkeley ...

, and the

. She was the founding Dean of the new School of Architecture at the University of California San Diego. In 2013, Santos was instrumental in creating a partnership between the Center for Advanced Urbanism at MIT and the American Institute of Architects Decade of Design initiative to link design and public health through research initiatives.

Notable projects

Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia The Institute of Contemporary Art or ICA is a contemporary art museum in Philadelphia. The museum is associated with the University of Pennsylvania, and is located on its campus. The Institute is one of the country's leading museums dedicated t ...

* Center for the Arts at

Albright College Albright College is a private liberal arts college in Reading, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1856 and had an enrollment of 1,652 students as of fall 2023. History Albright College traces its founding to 1856 when "Union Sem ...

, Reading, Pennsylvania * Children's Creativity Museum, formerly named Yerba Buena Gardens Children's Center in San Francisco * City Links, A Vision Plan for San Diego * Franklin/LaBrea Affordable Housing in Hollywood, California

Awards

* Wheelwright Prize 1968-1969 by the

. * Topaz Medallion for Excellence in Architectural Education from the

and Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (2009) * Terner Prize for Innovation and Leadership in Affordable HOusing, Finalist Mission Creek Senior Community (2007) * Boston Society of Architects John M. Clancy Award for the Design of Socially Responsible Housing, Mission Creek Senior Community (2007) * American Academy of Rome Prize (2002)

External links

Santos Prescott and Associates

World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2012 - The Davos Debrief: Social and Technological Models

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Santos, Adele Naude Fellows of the American Institute of Architects American women architects University of Pennsylvania School of Design alumni Harvard Graduate School of Design faculty University of California, San Diego faculty Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Harvard Graduate School of Design alumni Alumni of the Architectural Association School of Architecture 21st-century American women Wheelwright Prize winners