Designing the future: Torrey Carleton champions SAC architecture students

Torrey Carleton didn’t attend San Antonio College as a student. But as the executive director of the American Institute of Architects San Antonio chapter, and a member of the executive committee for SAC’s centennial, she’s become one of the college’s biggest advocates.

“I think SAC has something hugely important,” Carleton said. “This established architecture program is pointing the way for other pre-professional programs across our country to make opportunities possible for their students.”

AIA SA is a professional organization that serves as the leading voice for architecture in the region, with more than 600 architect and associate members in San Antonio and 22 surrounding counties.

When Carleton took the helm of the organization in 1993, she began to understand the influence of SAC’s architecture program on the local industry. SAC is the only Alamo Colleges campus to offer an architecture program, which was established in 1958.

“I quickly learned that so many San Antonio architects began their journey through their education at SAC,” she said. “The SAC faculty is beloved and the curriculum continues to be one of the best.”

She found an ally in Dwayne Bohuslav, an architecture professor at SAC since 2001. When Bohuslav became program coordinator in 2010, he sought to expand opportunities for SAC students and raise the program’s profile. He found an enthusiastic collaborator in Carleton.

“What a magnificent person and advocate Torrey has been,” Bohuslav said. “I have no idea where we would be without her.”

Investing in a program that launches the careers of local architects is essential for the continued success of the profession, Carleton said.

“The future of our members, of AIA SA, begins at SAC,” she said. “We need to connect with them early in their careers and make them feel welcome because they are the future of our profession.”

During Carleton’s tenure, AIA SA has supported SAC students in a variety of ways. The chapter’s annual golf tournament raises thousands of dollars for scholarships each year. The tournament awarded more than $5,600 in scholarship funds to local architecture students this year.

She helped establish a Job Shadow Day for SAC students. Now in its twelfth year, the program pairs sophomore students with local architecture firms for a day of real-world experience.

“Our students typically don’t have the luxury of mentors growing up,” Bohuslav said. “They haven’t had those mentors in the community, so they’re looking for them in those first two years. Any opportunities they get, they commit themselves to with great vigor and passion and joy, because it means something to them.”

AIA SA has donated equipment and materials, including laser cutters and studio tools. Work from SAC’s annual Sophomore Design Competition is exhibited at the organization’s Center for Architecture each year, giving students the chance to publicly display their designs.

Carleton also helped Bohuslav establish a lecture series at SAC that brings distinguished alumni and Latinx architects to campus. She has strengthened connections between the educational and professional communities by bringing faculty from SAC and UTSA (the only accredited architecture program in the San Antonio area) to AIA SA board meetings each month.

Carleton helps the SAC chapter of American Institute of Architects Students participate in Canstruction, an annual design/build competition that teams up local professionals with SAC students to build large-scale sculptures out of canned goods. Their installations are on display at North Star Mall each September and benefit the San Antonio Food Bank.

“We’ve tried to be a true partner whenever SAC needs us,” Carleton said. “Money is one thing, but this dynamic connection between faculty and students is where the magic happens. It’s where relationships deepen and opportunities grow.”

Carleton’s support for the program has fueled Bohuslav’s drive to expand possibilities for SAC students, creating opportunities not typically found at the community college level.

For example, under Bohuslav’s leadership, SAC launched a student chapter of AIA and sends students to national conferences each year. SAC students regularly design projects for local nonprofits and submit their work to regional and national competitions.

He is a founding member of the Coalition of Community College Architecture Programs (CCCAP), a group formed to support first-generation college students in their pursuit of architecture education. Many SAC students have won recognition in the CCCAP’s annual national design competition, including first place overall honors.

To further highlight the quality of the SAC architecture program, Carleton has led the charge to recognize Bohuslav’s contributions to the profession.

When the Texas Society of Architects – the statewide division of AIA – changed their rules to make community college professors eligible to receive the group’s Award for Outstanding Educational Contributions, Carleton and the AIA SA board nominated Bohuslav. He won the award in 2022, the first year he was eligible.

AIA SA launched the Dwayne Bohuslav Endowed Scholarship in May to celebrate his long history of achievement at SAC and his partnership with the organization. The scholarship will benefit future SAC architecture students.

“I see his total commitment to his work, his students and their futures, and that is so impressive and inspiring,” Carleton said.

The alliance between SAC and AIA SA helps ensure a steady pipeline of well-prepared talent into the industry, Carleton said.

“Architecture is not an easy path,” she said. “It’s a long, arduous path. You can’t even sit for the architecture exam until you have a 5-year degree. That represents a lot of education, time and money. SAC is doing a lot to prepare students for that journey.”

Carleton, who serves on SAC’s Centennial Executive Committee, also sees the college’s broader role in creating opportunities for all San Antonians.

“SAC is incredibly important,” she said. “Having a choice in education pathways is critical, particularly in a community where so many students are first-generation college students. You see people from every walk of life at SAC and it is a place that truly welcomes everyone.”

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