Meet CED Alums

California Magazine highlights the achievements of six of our alums in its summer issue: Thomas Robinson (BA Architecture 1991), Professor Emeritus Stanley Saitowitz (MArch 1977) , Hao Ko (BA Architecture 1994), Professor Emeritus Walter Hood (MArch + MLA 1989), Rossana Hu (BA Architecture 1990), and Lyndon Neri (BA Architecture 1987).

Dwelling on Earth: The Past and Future of the Places We Call Home (W.W. Norton) traces roughly half a million years of human habitation — from mammoth-bone huts to lunar habitats — to ask how we might build more resilient and sustainable communities today. Stefan Al, associate professor in the Department of Urban Policy and Planning at Hunter College of the City University of New York, is also the author of the books Supertall and and The Strip.

Arine Aprahamian (MArch 2019) is a Lebanese-Armenian architect, designer, and researcher. In 2018, she co-founded the studio Müller Aprahamian, which carries out projects in Lebanon, the United Kingdom, Armenia, and Italy. From 2023 to 2025, she was mentored by Pritzker Prize laureate Anna Lacaton as part of the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. She directed the documentary Bourj Hammoud: The Value of the Existing, which explores how small and strategic interventions can improve daily life in the dense neighborhood of Beirut where she grew up.

Four alums will receive the Distinguished Alumni Award at CED’s 2026 Commencement ceremony on May 19 at the Greek Theatre. This year’s awardees are Alma Du Solier (MLA 1999), Rossana Hu, Hon. FAIA (BA Architecture 1990), Lyndon Neri, Hon. FAIA (BA Architecture 1987), and Greg W. Perloff (MCP 1976). 

Heppel talks to Archinect about producing videos for her popular TikTok/Instagram channel Abby Architecture.