Stevens to lead architecture school at the University of Arkansas

James Stevens, architecture professor at Clemson University, has been named dean of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas. UA Provost Indrajeet Chaubey said Thursday (June 11) that Stevens will start in the role on Aug. 15.

Stevens will succeed Dean Peter MacKeith, who plans to return to the faculty to focus on the school’s expanding initiatives in timber and wood design innovation.

“Dr. Stevens is an accomplished architect and has experience as an administrator in higher education,” Chaubey said. “I’m thrilled to appoint him as dean, and his expertise in digital fabrication and architectural technology will greatly benefit the Fay Jones School, especially as we continue to build upon the great work that Dean MacKeith has started through the Anthony Timberlands Center for Design and Materials Innovation.”

MacKeith will conclude 12 years of leadership on June 30. Jim Gigantino, senior vice provost for academic affairs, will serve as acting dean from July 1 until Stevens’ appointment begins Aug. 15.

“To serve as dean of the Fay Jones School – to work on behalf of architecture, landscape architecture, and interior architecture and design – has been an honor and a privilege,” MacKeith said. “On behalf of the school’s students, staff, faculty and alumni, I welcome Jim Stevens to the role and to the school and look forward to working with him in the school’s continuing growth and advancement. Jim’s acumen, accomplishments and experience augur well for the school and university.”

Before serving as an architecture professor, Stevens was director of the Richard A. McMahan School of Architecture at Clemson University from 2020 to 2025. Before he joined the university in 2020, he was chair of the Department of Architecture at Lawrence Technological University and was the founding director of makeLab, the university’s digital fabrication laboratory.

“I’m grateful to Provost Chaubey and the campus community for their confidence and trust,” Stevens said. “The Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design is highly regarded across the country. I look forward to engaging and collaborating with the school’s faculty and staff and leadership throughout the university to continue to elevate the Fay Jones School on a regional, national and global stage.”

Stevens is a licensed architect and certified by the National Council of Architecture Registration Boards and is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. He received the AIA Henry Adams Medal for Excellence in the Study of Architecture and was a 2016 Fulbright Scholar in Albania and a 2025 Fulbright Specialist in Peru. Stevens is also co-author of the book “Digital Vernacular, Architectural Principles, Tools, and Processes” and has written multiple peer-reviewed papers and book chapters.

He earned a doctorate in architecture from the University of Ferrara in Italy and conducted his residency and research at Polis University in Tirana, Albania. He also earned a Master of Architecture from North Carolina State University and a bachelor’s degree in historic preservation from The Savannah College of Art and Design.

In December, MacKeith said he would step down as dean of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design, effective June 30. MacKeith was appointed the fifth dean of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design in 2014. He was reappointed in 2019.

“I’d like to thank Dean MacKeith for his exceptional leadership over the past 12 years,” Chaubey said. “Under his leadership, the school has gained international prestige, further aligned with the needs of the state and prepared hundreds of graduates who are now making an impact in Arkansas and beyond.

“I also want to thank Dean Jeff Edwards for serving as the search chair as well as the search committee for helping us fill this crucial leadership position.”