March 30, 2021

William M. Brown, III, FAIA, NOMA, Guides Nicole Tucker Along the Professional Path to STEAM!

by Nicole Tucker

I grew up in Newark, NJ, and attended University High School. While at University High, I learned of ACT-SO and competed first in Poetry and Computer Science in 1992. I placed in these categories at the state level but not nationally. The second-year I thought about the Architecture category as I was considering it as a career. 1993 would have been my Sophomore year and I would have been 15 at that time.  My Dad grew up with William M. Brown, III, FAIA, NOMA, (I believe their parents attended the same Church) and approached him about being a mentor for me which Bill/Mr. Brown said yes. 

• Positive self-esteem
• Positive interaction between our youth and the adult professional community
• Positive academic and artistic excellence
• High academic and cultural achievement

Students who participate in ACT-SO, can compete with other students in up to 3 of 33 categories which include STEAM, Business, Humanities, Performing, Visual & Culinary Arts. The local competition serves to showcase the hard work students have put in all year long. ACT-SO Students who receive gold medals at the local competition qualify to compete at the National Competition where they can receive scholarships, awards and prizes provided by national sponsors.

 

Fortunately, Mr. Brown’s Architecture firm was a short bus ride down Clinton Avenue. I think I went there either 1-3 times a week after school. Bill had an idea to get started with and I think we ultimately decided on a community center, which I named The Uhuru Community Center. Uhuru means freedom in Swahili. We discussed the purpose of the building, how it would be used, and having spaces that accommodated the potential activities. One space included a large gathering area for events that had rounded walls and a patio off of it where events could extend out to. Also, a major focus of the design was a long center hallway which had skylights extending throughout to let light in. I think this was especially meaningful as I remember a new school being built at that time near me that had no, and I mean no, windows. 

The ACT-SO competition required drawings of your design, a model, a paper, and a verbal presentation. I remember drawing the design and printing it on a machine at Mr. Brown’s office. I think I drew and reprinted at least five times. Under Bill’s mentorship, I placed first at the state level and nationally.  https://www.actsonewjersey.org/nj-national-winners/ 

Ultimately, I decided to pursue Mechanically Engineering and now Applied Statistics. However, my time with Mr. Brown started me down a road of what I think of as conscious design that has been applicable in several areas of my career. 

According to Bill, “Mentorship to others, in particular our younger generation, who may lack the resources or who have never been exposed to consider Architecture as their chosen profession, continues to inspire me and leaves an indelible mark in my life because others from the ‘village’ have invested in me encouraged, in me and I want to pay it forward to the next generation. When we mentor and speak, our words and deeds are like seeds of a sower. Some seeds will fall on the path and be eaten by the birds immediately, some seeds will fall on rocky terrain and be exposed and eaten by the birds too, some seeds will fall on the thorny bushes never taking root and will wither and die but other seeds will fall on the good soil, take root and prosper, something we can’t mathematically measure or quantify or necessarily see but having the faith that a new generation of Architects will emerge! We all must do our part in promoting the profession! It has been a lifetime of giving back to the community. The essence of my life is a “Quiet Strength” in sharing the good news of the Architecture profession and I will always ‘Let the Works I Have Done Speak For Me.’ ”

By Stacey Ruhle Kliesch, AIA, AIA NJ Advocacy Consultant | Posted in AIA Newark and Suburban, Diversity, EquityInArchitecture, Members & the Community | Tagged: #ACTSO, #AIAFellowship, #AIANewarkandSuburban, #Belonging, #diversity, #EDI, #emergingprofessionals, #equity, #EquityInArchitecture, #Inclusion, #IWD2021, #JEDI, #Mentorship, #Newark, #NicoleTucker, #rutgers, #STEAM, #UPENN, #WIA, #WilliamMBrownIIIAIA, #WilliamMBrownIIIFAIA, #WilliamMBrownIIIFAIANOMA, #WomensHistoryMonth, NAACP, NJNOMA, NOMA | Comments (0)