Abilene-based architect James D. Tittle is the recipient of this year's AIA Edward C. Kemper Award, and Randy Machemehl of the University of Texas at Austin is the 2005 recipient of the ARTBA's S.S. Steinberg Award..

Tittle, left, and Machemehl

AIA Award Goes to Abilene Fellow

The AIA Board of Directors recently elected James D. Tittle, FAIA, of the Tittle Luther Partnership of Abilene, as the 2006 recipient of the Edward C. Kemper Award. The award will be presented at the AIA 2006 Annual Convention in Los Angeles in June.

Named in honor of the AIA's first executive director, the award recognizes individuals who contribute significantly to the profession of architecture through service to the Institute. His nominators called Tittle's career "an extraordinary 50 years of service" and the "dedication of a professional lifetime of quiet leadership through practice, in positions of leadership and in civic activities." David Lancaster, Hon. AIA, executive vice president of the Texas Society of Architects, wrote: "Through [his] gifts and service, Jimmy Tittle has helped everyone see the world in different, always better and more beautiful ways. This is an achievement all the more noteworthy given that he hails from Abilene, a small geographically remote west Texas city.

"The inspiration of art, beauty, and public service knows no boundaries, it is true; but to travel farther, longer and at a greater personal expense to provide that inspiration--not only locally but at the state, regional, and national levels--speaks volumes about his personal values and the value he brings personally to the AIA."

Noted works in Tittle's hometown include Holy Family Catholic Church and the Abilene Christian University Tower of Light. For his body of design work, Tittle personally received the Llewellyn Pitts Honor Award in 1997. Called "the Texas Society's Gold Medal," it is the TSA's most prestigious award. The Tittle Luther Partnership received the Outstanding Firm Award from the TSA in 2003.

Highlights of Tittle's devotion to the AIA include 1958 charter membership in the Abilene Chapter of the AIA, for which he served as chapter president in 1973. He was on the board of the TSA, including service as president in 1993. Nationally, he sat on the Institute's Board of Directors, as juror and presenter for the Institute's honors program, and as regional director for the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. Tittle has been active at the national level through the American Architectural Foundation, serving on the AAF Board of Regents from 1992-1998.

Tittle was elevated to the College of Fellows in 1985 and was Texas representative to the COF from 1987-1991; chair of the jury of Fellows in 1992; chair of the nominating committee in 1994; and on the executive committee from 1995 to 1999, serving as chancellor from 1998-1999. He is a founding member of the Chancellor's Cup Golf Tournament.

"I am humbled by it all," Tittle said. "The AIA has done a lot more for me than I have ever done for it. So it makes me pleased to join the cadence of all those people who have preceded me in this, including a lot of good friends. It is honored territory, and I am appreciative."

UT Prof Receives ARTBA Award

Randy Machemehl, an engineering professional at the University of Texas at Austin, is the 2005 recipient of the American Road & Transportation Builders Association's S.S. Steinberg Award. The award was announced January 23 during the annual meeting of the association's Research and Education Division held in Washington, D.C.

The award, named after the founding president of the RED, recognizes an individual who has made remarkable contributions to transportation education.

Machemehl is the "Nasser I. Al-Rashid Centennial Professor of Transportation Engineering" in the department of civil, architectural and environmental engineering at UT. He has served as director of the university's Center for Transportation Research since 1999. Under his leadership, funding for CTR programs has more than doubled to more than $13 million last year. During his CTR tenure, the center has expanded faculty and student participation.

Machemehl has authored or co-authored more than 200 papers, articles and technical reports. His research interests focus on solving urban freeways operational problems and optimizing urban traffic signal systems.

Machemehl is a member of ARTBA's RED and serves on the board of directors of the Council of University Transportation Centers.