2025 Student Scholarships and Awards

Each year, the OAA provides annual scholarships in the amount of $2500 each to be awarded to students in any year of the undergraduate or graduate architecture program at each of the five Ontario Schools of Architecture (and one to a student in OCAD University’s Environmental Design program in the amount of $2000).

The Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence Scholarships are awarded annually to up to two students at each school who best demonstrate design excellence and exemplary responses to the need for Climate Action in a project or assignment, as well as two students at each school for their work as related to either Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion or Truth and Reconciliation.

The Architectural Guild Award (which provides a $1,000 cash Award) is also awarded annually to the graduating students from each of the five Schools of Architecture in Ontario who demonstrated exceptional leadership through design excellence combined with innovative approaches to sustainability in an assignment or project.
These scholarships are administered by each school, entirely according to their discretion.

The recipients for 2025, along with links to examples of their work when possible, will continue to be listed here as the schools make their announcements.

Carleton University – Azrieli School of Architecture and Urbanism

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Climate Action

Julianna Avramidis, for “Mounds of Tiranë.”
Shannelle De Croos, for “Mounds of Tiranë.”
Amelie Murphy, for “ORK Lab | Ottawa River Keeper Learning Lab & Gallery.”

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion or Truth and Reconciliation

Micaela Stokes, for a thesis titled “(Trans)forming the Binary: An Archive of Gender Affect.”
Aishah Aftab, for“Intergenerational Affordable Housing.”

Architectural Guild Award

Marco Vukovic, for a thesis titled“Reimagining the Socialist Blocks of New Belgrade: Exploring Rehabilitation and Identity through Architectural Inquiry.”

Laurentian University – McEwen School of Architecture

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Climate Action

Ifechukwu (Elvis) Kurume, for “Fractured Flow -Environmental Education Centre.”
Colin O’Neil, for “Building with the Herbaceous Layer Environmental Education Centre.”

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion or Truth and Reconciliation

Mackenzie Pitawanakwat, for a thesis titled, “Mino Goondawin: Exploring Co-Creation in the Design of the Atikameksheng Gathering Place.”
Jason Presse, for a thesis titled, “Multi/Dimensional.”

Architectural Guild Award

Landen James, for a thesis titled "A Decarbonist’s Approach: Rethinking of Schools as Community-Oriented Living and Learning Hubs in Mid-Sized Northern Cities.”

Toronto Metropolitan University – The Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Climate Action

Susan Ngo, for a thesis titled “Treehouse Kindergarten – Wander in Nature”; and
Stenzo Martin and Kyle Do Couto, for a thesis titled “The Promenade: Toronto’s Flood Remediation Tunnel.”

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion or Truth and Reconciliation

Hannah Robertson, for a thesis titled “Chronology of Accessibility & the Disability Rights Movement.”
Samiha Ali, for a thesis titled “Beyond the Wall.”

Architectural Guild Award

Eric Cheung, for a thesis titled “A Place for Urban Food Systems.”

University of Toronto – John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Climate Action

Liam Cassano, for a thesis titled “Material Feedback in Robotic Steam Bending: A Quantitative Approach to Wood Forming”, Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies, year 4 ($1250)
Karina Craig, for a thesis titled for “Material Feedback in Robotic Steam Bending: A Quantitative Approach to Wood Forming”, Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies, year 4 ($1250)
Micha Fairfax-Angod, for a thesis titled “Material Feedback in Robotic Steam Bending: A Quantitative Approach to Wood Forming”, Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies, year 4 ($1250)
Olivia Carson, for a thesis titled “Material Feedback in Robotic Steam Bending: A Quantitative Approach to Wood Forming”, Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies, year 4 ($1250)

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion or Truth and Reconciliation

Jing-Heng Huang, for a thesis titled "The Discomfort of Intimacy", Master of Architecture, year 2 ($1250);
Ambareen Fatima, for a thesis titled "Land, Relations, Truth and Reconciliation", Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies, year 4 ($1250);
Ashneet Sachdeva, for a thesis titled "The Contour - An Urban Sanctuary" , Master of Architecture, year 3 ($1250); and
Malak Saeed, for a thesis titled "The Contour - An Urban Sanctuary", Master of Architecture, year 2 ($1250).

Architectural Guild

Lhanzi Gyaltsan – for “Stone, Wind and Fire.”

University of Waterloo – School of Architecture

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Climate Action

Neli Yuen, for a thesis titled “Confluence: Blair Environmental School”; and
Renelle Handa for a thesis titled “Settle.”

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion or Truth and Reconciliation

Simon Liao, for a thesis titled “Queer Arrival: Uncovering the Spatial Narratives of QTPOC Newcomers in Toronto”; and
Kyra Hiltz, Aatiqah Sarfraz, and Marsal Wasal, for a thesis titled “Sowing Seeds: Matriarchies of Past, Present & Future.”

Architectural Guild Award

Landers Gordon for a thesis titled “Super:Light Architecture.”

OCAD University

Exceptional Leadership Through Design Excellence: Climate Action

Zach Rubalies, for a thesis titled “Cellula.”

Vladan Milic Scholarship

The Milic Scholarship is awarded to a student of Crescent School, Toronto who has demonstrated "pursuit of excellence in all his/her endeavours and helping others to achieve the same"; "demonstrated academic excellence and leadership within the student body”; and “who is pursuing post-secondary education immediately after graduation." This scholarship was set up in memory of Vladan Milic, past president of the OAA.

This year’s scholarship recipient is: Thomas James