Pratt Institute honors Professor David, FAIA; 2013-2014 Distinguished Teacher Award

Pratt Institute named Professor Theoharis David, AIA Fellow, the recipient of the 2013-2014 Distinguished Teacher Award. David received the recognition during Pratt Institute's 124th commencement ceremonies that took place at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan. More than 5,500 graduates, faculty, parents and guests participated in the ceremony. "I am grateful to the entire Pratt Institute community for this great honor. An educational goal for my students and future professional colleagues is to attain the ability to conceive of architecture in a way devoid of any dependence on preconception or popular trends," said David. "Through questioning, technological exploration, research, and application of theoretical positions, the students should be challenged to develop a design process that results in meaningful, realizable works of architecture that benefit those they are meant to serve," he said. The award recognizes the recipients' career accomplishments, commitment to advancing the profession of architecture, and exceptional dedication to Pratt's mission of educating creative professionals as responsible contributors to society. The Institute's students nominated David as this year's honoree and the Board of Trustees conferred the award upon the recommendation of the Academic Senate. David, a Pratt alumnus and professor of architecture, began his teaching career at in 1968. He is a former chair of Pratt's graduate architecture program and served as the faculty president of the Pratt School of Architecture. He has served as a guest faculty member of the Metropolis Graduate Program in Architecture & Urban Theory at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia in Barcelona, Spain, and is a visiting professor at the University of Cyprus. David co-authored a joint graduate program between Pratt Institute and the Center for Planning and Architectural Studies in Cairo, Egypt. He also originated and directed the Pratt in Greece and Cyprus international study program. David is the co-founder and design principal of Theo. David Architects TDA+KAL Engineering based in New York City and Nicosia, Cyprus. Established in 1984, the firm has designed projects in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and West Africa, valued in excess of $ 325,000,000. His design portfolio includes a wide range of projects for public and private clients, including sports stadiums, educational and medical facilities, religious structures, multi-unit residential complexes, private residences, and comprehensive master plans for major leisure and mixed-use developments. David is one of a five finalists in the current architectural competition for a new St. Nicolas Greek Orthodox Church in Lower Manhattan. The new church will replace the original structure destroyed during the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. His selected other works include the 30,000-seat GSP Stadium and Athletic Center in Nicosia, Cyprus; the restoration of the landmark University Settlement headquarters building in New York, N.Y.; the Almoayyed Village in Riffa, Bahrain; the New Life Baptist Church and Bethelite Institutional Baptist Church, both in Brooklyn, N.Y.; the Freitas Residential Development in Jatai, Brazil; the Phileleftheros Media Group Headquarters in Nicosia, Cyprus; the Bleu Residences vacation complex in Protaras, Cyprus; the headquarters of "The Door," the largest private provider of social services to underprivileged youth in Manhattan; and the Makaba Housing Development in Makaba, Bahrain. David is a winner of numerous U.S. and international awards and competitions. He was the 1999 European Union Mies van der Rohe Award nominee for the GSP Stadium in Cyprus, a National Institute of Architectural Education Design Award recipient, Architecture Interior Design Award recipient for the Total Eclipse project, and the Bard Honor Award and NYSAIA Design Award recipient for the Bethelite Institutional Baptist Church. David holds a Master of Architecture degree from Yale University and a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Pratt Institute. He is a past President of the Congress of International Modern Architects (CIMA); a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects' New York Chapter; a Registered Architect in New York, New Jersey, and the Republic of Cyprus; a member of the Cyprus Architects Association, the ETEK Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber; and the American Planning Association. He holds a certification from the National Council Architectural Registration Board (NCARB). Founded in 1886 by industrialist Charles Pratt, Pratt Institute is a private design, art and architecture college located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt with over 4,500 graduate and undergraduate students, offers programs in architecture, planning, interior design, industrial design, graphic design, fine art, history of art and design, fashion design, jewelry design, illustration, digital art, creative writing, library and information science, and other areas. It is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design (AICAD), a consortium of 43 private art schools in the United States and Canada.