Two Bruner/Cott Projects Receive National SCUP Awards

Two of our projects have been recognized in the 2026 SCUP/AIA-CAE Excellence in Architecture Awards, one of the most prestigious honors in higher education design. Of 99 applications submitted this year, the jury selected just 16 entries for recognition. We’re proud that two of them are ours! 

The Aliki Perroti & Seth Frank Lyceum at Amherst College received an Honorable Mention. Completed in 2023, the 21,000 sf Lyceum conjoins a historic Greek Revival house with a contemporary new addition to create a hub for humanistic inquiry, discourse, and collaboration. Inspired by the Lyceum of Ancient Athens, the building houses Amherst College’s Center for Humanistic Inquiry and Department of History, and serves as the incubator for a new campus district along South Pleasant Street. The project is also Amherst’s first building designed for zero embodied carbon, showcasing low-carbon construction in support of the college’s commitment to carbon neutrality by 2030. 

The Living Village at Yale Divinity School received a Merit Award. Completed in 2025 and designed in collaboration with Höweler + Yoon Architecture, the 43,000 sf graduate student residence is the largest Living Building Challenge–designed residential complex on a university campus and the first in the Ivy League. The result of a decade-long planning and design process, the Living Village serves simultaneously as an affordable student residence, a demonstration site for ecological stewardship, and a living-learning community rooted in the Yale Divinity School’s commitment to eco-theology and regenerative design. 

Winning projects will be featured on the SCUP website and presented at the SCUP 2026 Annual Conference, July 19–21 in Minneapolis, MN, where jury members will lead a session discussing observations and trends in higher education design, as well as challenges ahead for the field. Members of the Bruner/Cott team will be in attendance, and Partner/Principal Jason Jewhurst, FAIA, will be presenting.  

We’re grateful to SCUP and the AIA Committee on Architecture for Education for this recognition, and to our partners at Amherst College and Yale Divinity School for the vision and collaboration that made both projects possible. 

Harvard Boathouses Receive Preservation MA Award

We’re honored to share that our preservation and renovation work at Harvard’s Newell and Weld Boathouses has been recognized by Preservation Massachusetts with the Robert H. Kuehn Preservation Award! This award celebrates extraordinary projects that meld collaborative partnerships with creative, cutting-edge ideas for the rehabilitation and active reuse of historic buildings. 

The award will be celebrated at the annual Preservation Massachusetts awards ceremony on June 11 at 521 Overlook at Fenway Park. 

Originally designed by Peabody and Stearns Architects and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, both boathouses have served Harvard’s rowing community for over a century. Working with national boathouse experts Peterson Architects, our team carefully renewed each building—replacing historic cladding and roofing, restoring masonry, upgrading building systems, and reimagining interiors—all while preserving the character that makes these landmarks irreplaceable to generations of Harvard rowers. 

We’re grateful to Preservation Massachusetts for this recognition, and to our partners at Harvard and across the project team for the collaboration that made it possible. We look forward to celebrating alongside fellow champions of preservation in the Commonwealth on June 11!  

Bruner/Cott Named an EP Friendly Firm by AIA New England

Bruner/Cott Architects is honored to be recognized, once again, as an Emerging Professional Friendly Firm for 2026 by AIA New England!

This award is a testament to our firm’s commitment to supporting the next generation of architects and design professionals. We prioritize professional development, mentorship, and opportunities for emerging professionals to grow their skills, take on meaningful leadership roles, and thrive within our collaborative studio culture.

We are extremely proud of our team members whose dedication to learning, teaching, and sharing knowledge has made this recognition possible. From leading internal education programs and lunchtime presentations to actively participating in professional organizations, our staff continually exemplifies the values celebrated by this award.

Thank you, AIA New England, for recognizing the amazing emerging professionals that make up Bruner/Cott Architects!

Gund Hall Wins Docomomo US Award of Excellence

We’re pleased to share that Bruner/Cott has been recognized with a 2025 DOCOMOMO US Modernism in America Award of Excellence for our restoration of the curtain wall at Harvard Graduate School of Design’s Gund Hall. This honor, the highest distinction awarded by DOCOMOMO US in the Civic/Institutional Design category, celebrates outstanding preservation and reuse of modern architecture.

Originally completed in 1972 and designed by architect John Andrews, Gund Hall is a significant work of Late Modernism. Our team was entrusted with restoring its signature sloped curtain wall while dramatically improving energy performance, thermal comfort, and daylighting. The upgraded envelope preserves the building’s original material clarity and expressive form while supporting its long-term sustainability and continued academic use.

The DOCOMOMO US jury commended the project for its “exceptional care in improving performance without negatively impacting the original design intent,” recognizing the technical rigor and design sensitivity that guided the work.

The project will be formally honored at the 2025 Modernism in America Awards Ceremony, held at Design Within Reach in Chicago on Thursday, November 6, 2025.

Congratulations to the entire project team and collaborators, and thank you to the Harvard GSD for entrusting us with this important restoration.

Bruner/Cott earns Just Label 3.0

We’re excited to share that Bruner/Cott Architects has earned the JUST 3.0 Label from the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), a milestone that reflects who we are and how we work, both inside and outside our studio.

Nine years ago, we became the first company in New England to receive the JUST Label. Back then, it was a bold step toward greater transparency and accountability. Today, earning the 3.0 version shows how far we’ve come and how committed we are to building an equitable, inclusive, and purpose-driven practice.

Think of JUST as a “nutrition label” for socially responsible organizations. It publicly shares our performance in areas like diversity, equity, employee well-being, and community engagement. For us, it’s more than a scorecard—it’s a way to keep ourselves accountable and ensure that we design with purpose, making choices that align with our values and help create a more just future.

You can explore our JUST 3.0 results and see what we’re working toward next: View Our JUST 3.0 Profile

Gund Hall Recognized with Preservation MA Award

We’re honored to share that the Gund Hall Envelope Renewal Project at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) has been named a recipient of the Robert H. Kuehn Award by Preservation Massachusetts!

This award recognizes projects that demonstrate excellence in creative, collaborative, and community-focused approaches to historic preservation—qualities that were central to our work at Gund Hall. Bruner/Cott is proud to have led the design of this ambitious envelope renewal, which reimagines and rehabilitates the iconic 1972 structure to improve energy performance, occupant comfort, and long-term durability while preserving its distinctive architectural identity.

The Gund Hall project is a model for sustainable preservation, pairing thoughtful design strategies with a deep respect for modern heritage. We’re grateful to be recognized alongside a group of inspiring projects that are expanding the definition and impact of preservation across Massachusetts.

Thank you to Preservation Massachusetts for this meaningful honor—and congratulations to the full project team!

Amherst College Lyceum Receives Honor Award at BSA Gala

We’re thrilled to share that our project, the Aliki Perroti & Seth Frank Lyceum at Amherst College, received the prestigious Honor Award for Built Design Excellence in Adaptive Reuse, Renovation, & Historic Preservation from the BSA!

Earlier this month, our team gathered at the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport for an unforgettable evening celebrating design excellence at the annual Boston Society for Architecture Awards Gala. B/C Partner and Principal Jason Forney, FAIA, accepted the award on behalf of our team.

The project was commended for its creative integration of preservation, reuse, and sustainability. The jury commented:

“The project submission demonstrates a thoughtful integration of design excellence with sustainability goals, successfully combining historic preservation with modern, environmentally responsible building practices. The design emphasizes natural light, carbon neutrality, and community engagement while maintaining the aesthetic integrity of the existing Greek Revival structure. The project appears to have been very thoughtful and intentional about a variety of sustainability measures, leading to impressive energy reduction, especially considering that the project reused half of an existing building.”

A huge thank you to the BSA for this incredible recognition and for hosting a fantastic event. And of course, a special shoutout to our amazing project partners, Daniel O’Connell’s Sons, for celebrating with us and sponsoring the evening!

 

 

Bruner/Cott Named 2024 EP Friendly Firm

Bruner/Cott Architects has been honored as a 2024 Emerging-Professional Friendly Firm by AIA New England!

This recognition celebrates our dedication to fostering professional growth and personal development for the next generation of architects. We’re incredibly proud of our team’s commitment to nurturing emerging talent and creating opportunities for career advancement.

Thank you, AIA New England, for recognizing our firm!

MASS MoCA Building 6 Wins AIA COTE Top Ten Award

We are beyond thrilled to share that MASS MoCA Building 6 is a winner of the 2024 AIA COTE® Top Ten Award!

The 2024 COTE® Top Ten program is in its 27th year and highlights projects that meet the AIA Committee on the Environment’s rigorous criteria for social, economic, and ecological value. MASS MoCA Building 6 is Bruner/Cott’s second COTE® Top Ten project, following the R.W. Kern Center at Hampshire College in 2017.

Winners of the 2024 COTE® Top Ten were celebrated at an awards gala on June 7, 2024 at the AIA National Convention in Washington, D.C.

MASS MoCA Building 6 supports MASS MoCA’s mission to connect with the local community, repositions 5 million kg worth of carbon in brick, wood and concrete, uses 76% less energy to operate than a conventional museum, heals a contaminated site, and is connected to its beautiful natural setting.

The design for MASS MoCA Building 6 deeply considers embodied carbon. It maximizes the conservation of materials in place, utilizes site-salvaged materials, and uses a limited palette of new materials. Key spaces in the museum are created by sculpting space out of the building. Materials removed in this process were carefully stockpiled and reused—an architectural cut-and-fill operation that reduced waste and avoided the need for any virgin brick, stone, structural wood, or finish wood.

Learn more about MASS MoCA Building 6 and its transformative, sustainable reuse on the AIA website, here. 

3 Projects Win Cambridge Preservation Awards

Last week, our team celebrated a hat-trick of awards from the Cambridge Historic Commission! 3 Bruner/Cott projects were recognized with 2024 Preservation Awards: the Weld Boathouse, the Blackstone Steam Plant, and the Holden Chapel – all at Harvard University.

The Weld Boathouse was constructed in 1907 and is a contributing property in the Charles River Basin Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Our worked focused on modernizing the boathouse, making it fully accessible and fully functional while restoring the historic exterior, from roof to ground. The restoration and rehabilitation demonstrate that this historic structure can handle the contemporary needs of an active water use for the next century.

The Blackstone Steam Plant, constructed in 1901 as part of the Cambridge Electric Light Company. Our team completed an exterior renovation to fortify the building’s exterior and protect its operation against the potential increase in frequency, severity, and duration of wind-driven rain and rising water levels. The restoration and rehabilitation demonstrate that design for climate change can work in concert with historic architecture.

At Holden Chapel, our team preserved the historic façades of the one of the oldest buildings in Harvard Yard, with primary focus on the 18th century wooden sculpture and original pediment cladding on the west elevation. The project evolved through paint analysis and disassembly to inform a deep, multi-phase restoration.

Congratulations to our clients and thank you to the CHC for recognizing our preservation work!