The AIA Youngstown Design Awards Program

Award Submissions

The AIA Youngstown Design Awards program has been established to acknowledge excellence in design.  Through this program, AIA Youngstown strives to increase awareness of architecture in society and to acknowledge the creative and innovative designs of AIA Youngstown members in the built environment.  

Each submission is $250.  Non-member submissions will not be juried.

Award Eligibility

Any AIA Youngstown member may submit. The submitting firm must maintain an active office within the AIA Youngstown Chapter and be authorized to practice in Ohio. If the submitting firm is not the sole author of the design, all contributing firms must be clearly identified, and the submitting firm’s role must be clearly defined. Projects previously recognized by AIA Youngstown are not eligible for re‑submission. The member architect must be the principal design architect, and designs produced by collaborating or consulting firms are not eligible for consideration.

Entries may include projects of any size, budget, style, or building type.  Projects may have been constructed anywhere but must have been completed after January 1, 2020.  The project's completion date must be on or before July 15, 2026. Unbuilt projects are designs that will never be executed (e.g., a contest entry that was not chosen).  Unbuilt projects will be juried with built projects, not as a separate category.  

Jury

The jury is currently being assembled, but will include architects from across the region and the country, representing a wide range of project types and markets.

Categories

AIA Youngstown Members: AIA Youngstown will accept all submissions under a general category classification. 

Submissions

The submission process for the AIA Youngstown Design Awards is digital.  All entry forms, project information, and file uploads will be handled through the OpenWater online submission site.

Applicants shall complete the entry application.  Once you submit the application, you can begin uploading the required files and information.  You may save your work as you go and return to the site as often as needed, but all submission materials and entry fee payments must be completed and submitted by the submission deadline.  Once an entry is completed for a particular project, the entire project may be submitted to other award programs using the OpenWater awards system.

The firm name or the names of individual members must not appear on any materials except on the submittal form.  Projects that do not meet this requirement will be disqualified.  PLEASE DO NOT INCLUDE THE SUBMITTING FIRM'S NAME IN THE DESCRIPTION OR ON THE DRAWINGS.

The submission material shall be as indicated on the submission form.  In general, new buildings or renovations shall include both interior and exterior photographs as well as at least one plan and one elevation.  For interior projects, submitters shall provide images of the interior depicting the work performed.  The submission allows for optional pictures and plans when determined necessary.

Submissions Open

August 5, 2026

Submission Deadline

September 18, 2026

Awards Ceremony

AIA Youngstown Annual Meeting, October 30, 2026, Stambaugh Auditorium, Youngstown, OH

To complete your submission, you must:

  • Complete the SUBMISSION FORM in the awards submission portal by September 18, 2026, 6:00 pm EDT
  • Upload the PROJECT PDF, PRESENTATION PDF, and IMAGE FILES to the submission portal by September 18, 2026, 6:00 pm EDT
  • Make full payment of ENTRY FEES within the submission portal (once the project is finalized) by September 18, 2026, 6:00 pm EDT

Please direct your questions to AIA Youngstown via bruce@phillips-sekanick.com

Completing the Submission Form
If you are a first-time visitor to the site, you will need to register.  If you are returning to the site, you will have to enter your email and password.  These prompts will appear once you click on the link below.  If you previously submitted to the AIA Youngstown or AIA Ohio Design Awards and selected “remember me,” you’ll be taken directly to the next screen.  On the next screen, you may choose to begin a new submittal or edit an existing submittal.  As noted, you can work on the submittal, save the information, and then return to complete it later. 

After you select either “existing” or “new,” you’ll be directed to the submission portal.

SUBMIT HERE for the 2026 AIA Youngstown Design Awards Program

 

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