Professor Emeritus W. Mike Martin receives Sandra Vivanco Education Award from AIASF
Professor Emeritus W. Mike Martin, FAIA, is the 2025 recipient of the Sandra Vivanco Education Award from the San Francisco chapter of the AIA. The award recognizes an organization or individual advancing architectural education through teaching, design, scholarship, research, or service excellence. It is named in honor of Sandra Vivanco (BA Architecture 1985), a renowned architect, educator, and advocate for diversity in design who taught at UC Berkeley from the mid-1990s until her death in 2020.
The selection jury pointed to Martin’s deep impact on the architecture community in the Bay Area, noting his importance as a mentor, role model, and connector. “You can feel the respect for Mike just in how people light up talking about his teaching, and not just in a classroom sense.”
In presenting Martin with this award at the 2025 AIASF Design Awards Ceremony + Gala on Thursday, April 24 , the AIA said:
“Congratulations to this year’s recipient, W. Mike Martin, a beloved educator whose contributions to architectural education have shaped generations.
“Professor Mike Martin’s distinguished career spans over 40 years, including 29 at UC Berkeley. A champion of human-centered design, his teaching and research have shaped architectural education nationwide — from Kansas State and CU Boulder to Cal Poly and Berkeley. His work on collaborative design, storytelling, and the relationship between education and practice has been widely published, including the influential Design Informed. A Fellow of the AIA and a leader in academia and practice, Mike has served as an editor, accreditation team member, and international educator. His guiding values — human well-being, integrity, and open dialogue — continue to inspire generations of students and professionals alike.”
“I am surprised and deeply honored by this award,” says Martin.