Welcome to the AUA UMass Amherst Conference: June 23-27, 2024

Dear AUA Colleagues,

On behalf of the Program Committee, we are pleased to invite you to the 69th Annual Association of University Architects Conference at UMass Amherst - the flagship of the University of Massachusetts system. The conference will take place from Sunday, June 23rd to Thursday, June 27th 2024.

Founded in 1863, UMass Amherst is the largest public research university in New England and is located in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, only 90 miles from Boston and 175 miles from New York City. It has a diverse and inclusive community of 32,000+ students supported by over 6,400 staff and for the 7th year in a row is ranked #1 in Princeton Review’s best campus food. UMass Amherst offers more than 200 distinct academic programs - including highly ranked programs in business, computer science, health care and the social sciences. With over 14,000 beds, It is in the top 10 largest residential university housing programs and is part of the Five College Consortium that includes Amherst, Smith, Hampshire and Mount Holyoke colleges.

The campus is home to an eclectic collection of facilities spanning the 18th to 21st centuries, over half of which were built during the postwar period by prominent mid-century architects. The theme for the AUA conference is “Reinventing the Modern” and the Program Committee is developing an exciting program to support its content and the sub-themes for each day.

We will introduce you to award-winning facilities across the UMass Campus each day and have planned a day on the Smith College campus, as well as events for you and guests at colorful local venues and museums.

We have hotel rooms reserved at the Murray D. Lincoln Campus Hotel designed by Marcel Breuer and Herbert Beckhard in 1970 - the conference rate of $159/night (plus taxes & fees) by using this link (click Book Now, and Change Request to specify dates).

As a preview of the UMass Amherst campus, our conference hotel and the many local attractions please have a look at our Welcome to UMass Video.

We look forward to seeing you in June!

Richard Yeager, AIA, Host

Brent Stringfellow, AIA, Program Committee Chair