State AIA grants top honor to Clemson professor

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Ray Huff, emeritus associate professor, director of the Clemson Architecture Center of Charleston and a fellow of the American Institute of Architects, was awarded the Medal of Distinction by the South Carolina Chapter of the American Institute of Architects at its 2018 annual meeting.

The Medal of Distinction is the highest honor that AIA South Carolina can bestow upon a member, according to a news release from Clemson University.

“It is a great honor to be recognized by my peers for an award of this caliber,” Huff said in the news release. “I’m so fortunate that I’ve been able to pair my love of design with pedagogy and that I’ve had the opportunity to work with many of Clemson’s talented students.”

The AIA South Carolina board of directors confers this recognition to those with a significant body of work or service that has made a lasting influence on the practice of architecture in the state.

“Ray is the consummate architect, leader, professional, teacher and mentor,” Kate Schwennsen, director of Clemson’s School of Architecture, said in the news release. “He is always looking toward the future and contributing innovation and wisdom to making the future better,”

John Jacques, professor emeritus of Clemson’s School of Architecture, and Lisa Lanni, a former student and partner of McMillian Pazdan Smith, nominated Huff for the award.

Huff graduated from Clemson in 1971 and returned to direct and teach at the Charleston Architecture Center in 1987.