David Pastre, principal lecturer in Architecture, director and coordinator of the Architecture+communityBUILD certificate, was recognized for winning a 2026 Akers Prize during the South Carolina Awards in the Humanities, presented by Palmetto Citizens Federal Credit Union, on October 15, 2026. The awards ceremony took place at the South Carolina State Museum in Columbia. Each year, South Carolina Humanities recognizes those who are doing the work of humanists: service, work in South Carolina communities, research and teaching, and advocacy. The Akers Prize is given to those working in unique, innovative ways to use culture and history to bring people together, and Pastre was one of two recipients for this year’s Prize.
For Pastre, being honored by the South Carolina Humanities organization for the Akers Prize meant so much more than just personal recognition.
“I was genuinely surprised and incredibly honored. When you spend your career teaching, working with students, and trying to make contributions to communities around you, you don’t necessarily do it with recognition in mind,” said Pastre. “What makes this especially meaningful is thinking about all the students, colleagues and community partners who have been part of that journey. While it’s certainly a personal honor, I see it as a recognition of the collaborative nature of the work we do at Clemson and I’m very grateful to be able to do it here.”
Ece Erdogmus, founding dean of the College of Architecture, Art and Construction, said that David is most deserving and that this work is a wonderful example of what is possible when CAAC and community unite.
“This award is incredibly well deserved, as David and our Charleston Design Center connects students, nonprofits, and municipalities through community engaged design-build work year after year,” Erdogmus said. “Their work addresses real needs of the community, provides valuable experiential learning opportunities to our students, and leaves behind meaningful structures for the communities to use and enjoy for a long time.”
Dan Harding, department chair for the Richard A. McMahan School of Architecture, said that David’s work is so powerful because of the combination between teaching and practice, and he is elated that David is the first in this field to be honored with an Akers Prize.
“Every generation of educators has a few who redefine what teaching can be, and David Pastre is one of them,” said Harding. “For more than twenty years, his work has reached beyond the studio and into the heart of South Carolina’s communities, proving that tomorrow can be better than today, and that we can use our minds and our hands to design, create, and build a better South Carolina. David doesn’t just teach architecture; he teaches purpose. His students are taught leadership through action before anything else. They become doers. He is the first from our discipline to receive the Akers Prize, a distinction that speaks to how uncommon and powerful his work truly is.”
To learn more about this year’s recipients of the South Carolina Humanities awards and prizes, please visit their website. To explore some of David Pastre’s work with the Clemson Design Center, specifically the Architecture+communityBUILD certificate in Charleston, visit this website.
