The ACE Mentorship Program of NY has been paired with WHSAD for over 7 years. Within the ACE program itself there are multiple teams from which WHSAD students can select. One of the most innovative and renowned teams is team 6. Although team 6 incorporates fields like engineering, acoustics, mechanical engineering, plumbing, construction management, its main focus is architecture.
Each year a group of WHSAD students end up selecting team 6 and learn to sharpen their skills in drafting and rendering while also gaining new knowledge and connections. In ACE, students get to interact with professionals from various fields. Students like me go to ACE because we get to learn about the intricate and useful parts of architecture that you wouldn’t learn in school. Also, the program helps with future architectural opportunities, enhances one’s portfolio, and fosters a professional network that can aid one tremendously in the future.
I’m Cynthia Luna-Marcelino. My journey with ACE started freshman year, making this year my third year attending. In these past three years I was able to gain knowledge, connections, and enhance my skills while enjoying my time in team 6. Each year I have learned new skills, and through this learning I selected different roles. In my first year I picked the exterior designer role in which I had to do a deep dive in materials and human interactions. These were new experiences to me and took me out of my comfort zone, which helped me grow. In my second year I chose to be a part of the acoustics team. I worked with materials once again but also had to keep in mind human interaction and accessibility. This was actually when I realized how much thought is put in each building to incorporate accessibility; each detail is thoroughly considered to fit the different needs of humans. This year I was the plumbing engineer of the group. Team 6 decided to create a community center with the main focus being sustainability. As the plumbing engineer, I had not only to talk about the community center’s pipes and waterways but also to explain how the building itself is sustainable. Our building incorporated gray water harvesting, monitored energy use of materials with low embodied carbon, and geothermal heating/cooling. With each year, I am able to learn about varying fields with team 6 and can’t wait to see what next year has for me.
Hello I’m Talia Simon, and I was part of this year’s ACE team 6. I learned about the ACE mentorship program through our school. It was advertised to me by my architecture teacher, Mr. Rodriguez, in the beginning of the school year. Once I found out that team 6 was working with Gensler, I was sold. I knew that Gensler is a massive architecture firm and that a lot of good opportunities could come out of this.
My dream job ever since I was about five years old has been to be an architect. ACE is opening many doors for me by allowing me to experience working in a team around other like minded people with the same interests as me and also getting to experience working with licensed architects outside of school. My ACE mentors are very supportive; every single one of them were there to help us and never crushed any of our ideas but instead reinforced and guided them. When I started ACE I thought they would be cold and super professional all the time, but they weren’t; they became more like our friends.
A lesson that I learned that stuck with me is that having a team is very important. I used to think that I could just do everything by myself, but now I see that when everyone is focused and doing their part the end project is so much better than if I had just done it by myself. My role in the overall project was exterior designer. Although just because that was my job that wasn’t the only role I helped out in. I helped with interior design and floor planning as well.
My experience in the ACE program was a very positive one. Not only did I gain new experiences and open doors but I was also having a lot of fun. Throughout all the lessons I would be laughing with friends and eating the really good food that they give us. If you have an interest in architecture, I think the ACE program is an amazing opportunity to get a feel for what the industry is like. Not only that but I also made a lot of friends and am genuinely enjoying my time. I’m definitely coming back next year.