The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) has re-accredited Southern Polytechnic State University's School of Architecture for five more years. It is the second time the School of Architecture has been accredited - in 1990 it became only the second institution in the nation to receive an initial accreditation of five years. Southern Polytechnic's School of Architecture is the only public institution in Georgia to offer a Bachelor's degree in Architecture.

"We are obviously very delighted," said Harry Kaufman, dean of the School of the Architecture. "This is another step towards national recognition for the school. It's also great for education in Georgia, and for potential architecture students."

With national accreditation, Southern Polytechnic graduates are eligible in all of the United States to sit for registration examinations.

The NAAB met with members of the School of Architecture in February of this year. SPSU was passed on fifty-one of fifty-two qualifications toward accreditation. "This is tremendous for the school. We not only received accreditation, but did so in a laudatory way," said Kaufman. According to Kaufman, the NAAB visiting team was impressed by the School of Architecture's commitment to pedagogy, collaboration, and design-theory-practice balance and integration." Established in 1940, the NAAB is the only agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) for the accreditation of professional-degree programs in architecture.

Ben Darmer, FAIA, of Sizemore Floyd Architects in Atlanta, called the re-accreditation a great accomplishment. "The criteria that the NAAB has established is difficult to meet; it's a rigorous review process. The team was obviously very impressed with SPSU's School of Architecture, and the fact that their fundamentals are so sound," said Darmer.

In 1964, the Architectural Engineering Technology associate degree program was established at Southern Polytechnic. This was eventually phased out as a four-year degree program was approved by the Board of Regents in 1989, and began operating in September 1990. Southern Polytechnic's School of Architecture received its initial accreditation in January 1995.

Southern Polytechnic's architecture program is a two plus three study consisting of the design foundation the first two years, covering visual communication, design and the technology and history of architecture and the built environment. "We pursue a technical direction, but maintain an overall balance with theory and practice," said Kaufman.

Construction has begun on a new $11 million School of Architecture building. Expected in January 2002, the three-story building will contain a gallery, studios, a design-build shop and a computer room. It will also allow the program to expand by up to fifty percent.