MINNEAPOLIS, August 3, 2020 — Kermit Duncan, AIA, is the 2020 AIA Minnesota Louis Lundgren Award for Service recipient.
Each year, the Louis Lundgren Award for Service recognizes one Minnesota architect for their outstanding contributions in the area of community and professional service. Through their work as citizen architects, recipients of the award are regarded by the peers for their prolonged and effective volunteerism.
Kermit Duncan has for decades been an active member of the Association of Architects (AoA), and later participated in the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA), where he nurtured young minority architects to find their path and voice within the profession. He was a member of the AIA Minnesota’s Diversity Task Force whose work led to the Diversity Task Force Report in 2015, and subsequently served as a founding member of the Committee on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Bringing this vital this work home to the architecture studio, he helped organize Miller Dunwiddie’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Group which regularly hosts in-office discussions on topics of racial and gender equity and constructive means for bringing about institutional change.
He has participated for four years as a Mentor and Lead Mentor for the Twin-Cities based Architecture, Construction, and Engineering (ACE) Mentorship Program, advancing their mission to excite and encourage underrepresented students to pursue careers in the design and construction industry. Letters of support for Mr. Duncan’s nomination talked extensively about his deep dedication to helping students engage with the profession at a personal level.
The AIA Minnesota Louis Lundgren Award jury included representatives from AIA Minnesota committees and award winners Mia Blanchett, FAIA; Ligeia Cholensky, Allied member, AIA, incoming co-chair of the AIA Minnesota Committee on Design; Alan D’Souza, AIA; Katie Pope, AIA; and Jesse Turck, AIA.
The jury noted Duncan’s decades-long career of service, particularly in educating the next generation of the profession. They also noted that he lives his values in his work, never seeking recognition for the many hours he puts in, and his role in blazing a trail for architects of color to see themselves in practice.
Duncan will receive his award at the annual AIA Minnesota Awards Event on December 4, 2020. Learn more about the Louis Lundgren Award here.
The American Institute of Architects Minnesota, founded in 1892, is dedicated to strengthening our communities, improving our built environment and providing exceptional design. For more information on the organization and Minnesota architectural firms, reference our website.
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