Professor Hala Nassar, the director of Clemson University’s landscape architecture programs, is now Chair Elect of the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture’s (CELA) Academy of Fellows.
The honor is a result of decades of leadership in the organization and nominations from her colleagues.
“I was very touched by what a vote of confidence it was to have national colleagues who are chairs, directors, and deans, reaching out by email to say, ‘I nominated you, please say yes,’” Nassar reflected. “That was an incredible validation of everything I’m doing and how much I care about the profession.”
As Chair Elect, Nassar will serve a three-year term working with national colleagues to advance the landscape architecture profession. In this role, she will help shape initiatives that promote excellence, foster innovation, and support scholarly contributions within the field.
“I’m proud of our faculty who lead not only at Clemson, but among their national and international peers. Dr. Nassar’s extraordinary leadership in CELA not only raises the profile of our landscape architecture program, but it also elevates our student experience as she continually collaborates with and learns from other leaders in the field.”
Ece Erdgomus, Dean, College of Architecture, Art and Construction
Clemson impact
As director of the Master of Landscape Architecture for the Richard A. McMahan School of Architecture, Nassar has overseen several remarkable successes, including a 100 percent job placement rate for the MLA program.
Last year, she led the rigorous re-accreditation process for Clemson’s graduate and undergraduate landscape architecture programs, successfully renewing accreditation from the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board (LAAB).
“Our accreditation is based on meeting seven standards, but at the heart and core of the accreditation are two standards: professional curriculum and student outcomes,” she explained, “and those two standards came out flawless.”
Nassar has also championed the World Design Studio, which unites Clemson University students with partners at Ain Shams University of Egypt and Huazhong Agricultural University of China. Each year, the studio works to create real-world design solutions for urban areas (or fabrics) around the globe. Projects have centered on locations including a UNESCO World Heritage site in the Egyptian city of Luxor, the seacoast of Charleston, the Great Pyramids of Giza, and, most recently, the unique downtown of Bristol, a city that straddles the state line between Virginia and Tennessee.
In addition to the World Design Studio, Nassar has led a multi-year partnership with the One Eleuthera Foundation to preserve the natural beauty of Tarpum Bay, a fishing community in the Bahamas, while designing strategies for hurricane resilience, climate adaptation to sea-level rise, and community-based economic development.
National landscape architecture leader
Nassar’s leadership in CELA has spanned decades and helped to elevate her peers in the profession. After serving first as a regional director, she was elected for two terms as a 2nd vice president of the organization, during which she devoted significant energy to leading and advancing the Awards Committee.. She led the expansion of their awards to recognize students as well as educators, and introduced their first Lifetime Achievement Award, which is now presented at their annual conferences.
In 2020, she was nationally elected by her peers to CELA’s Academy of Fellows which recognizes educators for their lifetime accomplishments in teaching, scholarship and service. The Academy is a select body, and she now serves as its elected Chair. “I felt like I am seen, and that my colleagues know who I am, and they are trusting me that the next few years would be in good hands,” she remarked.
About the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture
The mission of the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture is to support educators to advance the profession of landscape architecture.
CELA is composed of virtually all the programs of higher learning in landscape architecture in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Individual and institutional members from many other parts of the world who belong to the organization.
All members of the faculties from these institutions are invited to participate in CELA, as are others who possess an interest in the academic practice of landscape architecture. The Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture can trace its beginnings to 1920, and for more than ninety years, it has been concerned with the content and quality of professional education in landscape architecture.
