USC School of Architecture's 13th annual Design Charrette asks students to define the 'New Urban American Dream'

The results of the 13th annual Design Charrette student challenge have been shared by the USC School of Architecture following its completion last week in Los Angeles. 

For the 2024 edition, competitors responded to the prompt 'Defining the New Urban American Dream.' 

“The challenge of this year’s charrette was to reclaim what it means to 'live the American Dream' in Southern California by reimagining thriving residential communities with density, diversity, and, most importantly, design,” USC shared. “The teams were tasked with designing a vibrant residential community around Lincoln Heights and the Los Angeles River that reimagines the decommissioned Lincoln Heights Jail and the surrounding community.”

Fourteen teams of students submitted their designs under professional guidance and using their interdisciplinary expertise. In the end, an overall team of winners walked away with the $5,000 Grand Prize, followed by the runner-up, a third-place winner, and two honorable mentions to total $15,000 in awards money. The school says their experience will later pay dividends in the student’s future professional endeavors, especially in terms of making concept presentations to clients and other related aspects that are equally vital parts of the architectural trade.

USC was able to stage the week-long challenge with the support of representatives from SOM, HOK, Gensler, and other high-profile L.A. firms that were included in the 2024 Guild Charrette Committee. Winners of this year’s competition can be viewed below. More information about last year’s 12th Design Charrette can also be found here.

Grand Prize — “Gradient” by Jianghui Qu, Negin Sabouhi, Zhiyu Lin

2nd Place Award — “The ‘Amended’ American Dream” by Gregor Tillman, Ernest Tse, Charles Lafon

3rd Place Award — “Freedom To. Freedom From” by Ethan Santana, Jake Scheckelhoff, Sakiko Tanaka

Honorable Mention — “Rooted Permanence” by Isabella Taylor, Emily Huang, Lauren Jian

Honorable Mention — “Outward, Inward, Through” by Alec Long, Michael Arias, Farida Mokhtar