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from the issue of May 4, 2006
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Landscape architecture program attracts students for fall semester
BY SARAH BAKER, FOR THE SCARLET
UNL Freshman Kelsey Latshaw first got interested in her future major, landscape architecture, in a place not entirely surprising.
"I was at an art museum, and they had an outdoor tour of their gardens," Latshaw said. "I found the garden tour much more interesting than any of the art inside the museum."
So it's appropriate, then, that Latshaw is the first UNL student to be admitted into the architecture college's newly minted Landscape Architecture program.
"Landscape Architecture is perhaps one of the most demanding emerging fields in the nation," said Wayne Drummond, dean of the College of Architecture. "It's very important that we offer this program."
The program, which results in a five-year professional degree, is taught with a collaborative approach between Architecture, Horticulture and Agronomy, and Community and Regional Planning. Students will gain a broad education, combining art and science in a studio-based curriculum and addressing planning, design, development, management, rehabilitation and land preservation.
The program was approved in December, and Drummond said it will go through the accreditation process during the next five years. The college advertised the program to prospective students through high school counselors as well as through some statewide NET Radio spots.
The College of Architecture will hire two new faculty for the program, but Drummond said most of the necessary faculty are already with the university, either on City or East campus. The profession itself is a collaborative one, requiring professionals of many fields to work together, Drummond said. The program mirrors that nature.
"Landscape architecture deals with a range of ecosystems," Drummond said. "The design of the land is a very temporal act - it can't be designed like a building. Things like growth, the seasons and the biological maintenance of the environment have to be considered."
Richard Sutton, associate professor of landscape, architecture and horticulture and a registered landscape architect, said that collaborative aspect makes it very "of the moment."
"The problems and issues in the field have become so complicated that no one person can deal with them," Sutton said.
After graduation, students will be prepared for real world situations when they have to work with architects, engineers, planners, natural resource managers and other professionals on a daily basis, Sutton said.
The collaboration begins early on. In their first semester, students work in studios with future textile designers and architects and immediately have the chance to understand the common visual aspects of the profession.
The program also has a focus on the environmental issues both commercial and residential developers face.
"There is a dire need for us to be aware of the kinds of environ mental problems we are causing as we build and rebuild our cities," Sutton said. "Understanding how natural forces and human nature can intersect is an important part of the program. It's not just humans and it's not just nature. We have to be able to work those things together."
Sutton said the program has also been exciting for him as a professor because the teachers have had the chance to work together on creating the best program possible, bringing ideas together to make the program a reality.
"There is a dire need for landscape architects," he said.
Sutton said there are three jobs out there - in Nebraska and across the country - for every one practicing landscape architect.
There is also a need for students, Drumond said.
"The young people in this program have to have a pioneering spirit and a vision," he said.
For Latshaw, that spirit runs in her family. Her uncle is a landscape architect, and she spent the past two summers shadowing his practice. She said eventually, she'd like to work on the landscape design for businesses, or possibly city parks and gardens.
"Working with my uncle," she said, "has confirmed my passion for landscape architecture."
Landscape Architecture at UNL
* A major in Landscape Architecture will be offered for the first time at UNL in the fall semester.
* Program results in a five-year professional degree.
* Taught through a collaborative effort between Architecture, Horticulture and Agronomy, and Community and Regional Planning.
GO TO: ISSUE OF MAY 4
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Landscape architecture program attracts students for fall semester
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