Accreditation

Volunteer with NAAB

Volunteers are the heart of accreditation, contributing their time, expertise, and passion for excellence in architectural education each year to engage in peer review of NAAB’s accredited programs. Representing the perspectives of educators, regulators, practitioners, and students, they spend more than 10,000 hours conducting much of the work of accreditation, supported by the NAAB accreditation staff. NAAB volunteers serve as members of NAAB’s Board of Directors, members of the Accreditation Review Committee, and as members of visiting teams, travelling across the country and internationally to review professional programs in architecture seeking or reaffirming NAAB accreditation.

For questions about volunteer opportunities, please email accreditation@naab.org.

Volunteer group at table

Accreditation Review Committee

Applications for the Accreditation Review Committee (ARC) are currently closed.

The ARC is responsible for conducting reviews of maintenance of accreditation reports, including, but not limited to, the Annual Report, Special Report, and Plan to Correct, and making recommendations to NAAB’s Board of Directors regarding the program’s ongoing compliance with NAAB’s Conditions and Procedures for Accreditation.

ARC members must be educators, practitioners, and/or regulators in the field of architecture who have served on a minimum of one NAAB accreditation visit within the past five years and received a positive evaluation. NAAB is committed to ensuring that the ARC represents a diversity of professional roles, demographics, and experience, and that its members demonstrate familiarity with the NAAB Conditions and Procedures for Accreditation.

ARC members will serve two-year terms. The ARC timeline is as follows:

  • July 2024: Applications are due by July 31, 2024
  • August -September 2024: NAAB staff will review applicants to ensure compliance with eligibility criteria and will forward eligible applicants to the NAAB president for review and appointment.
  • October 1, 2024: NAAB president announces appointment of ARC members.
  • November 2024: ARC members will be trained.
  • January 2025: ARC will begin their reviews.

As a reminder, ARC members cannot concurrently serve on the staff or on the Board of Directors of AIA, AIAS, ACSA, or NCARB. ARC members are required to complete NAAB training before they begin their first term and are subject to NAAB’s Conflict of Interest, Confidentiality, and other applicable policies.

Visiting Team Pool Members

NAAB is currently seeking volunteers from ACSA, AIA, AIAS, NCARB, and NOMA for individuals to serve on visiting teams for accreditation visits scheduled between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028. If you are a current visiting team member and are unsure of your team pool status, please email accreditation@naab.org.

Individuals interested in volunteering should read below to learn more about serving as a visiting team member and should reach out to the following organizations to inquire about volunteering with NAAB.

  1. ACSA: Mike Monti, Executive Director
  2. AIA: Rolling Application
  3. AIAS: Colt Brock, President, and Larry Hoffer, Executive Director
  4. NCARB: Joshua Batkin, Vice President, Council Relations
  5. NOMA: Tiffany Brown, Executive Director

Each visiting team consists of at least four individuals, each of whom represents one of the four constituent areas of expertise: a practitioner, an educator, a regulator, and a student, all selected from the team pool.

Individuals should have a demonstrated interest in architecture education and be current in the range of skills necessary for contemporary practice. Nominees should have excellent written and verbal communication skills and have the ability to work effectively in teams. NAAB encourages individuals from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in our profession to apply.

Important information:

  • Team Training – Nominees will be required to complete NAAB’s team training program prior to participating on a visiting team.
  • Availability – Team members must be available for all the pre-site visit meetings in addition to being fully present for all the days of the visit, which will be in-person starting in 2024. Spring visits generally occur between late January and early April of each year; fall visits are typically scheduled between late September and early November.
  • Team Selection – In comprising a site visit team, NAAB will consider individual areas of expertise, availability for the established visit dates, and will balance each team in terms of geography, gender, race/ethnicity, and accreditation experience.