Kremer Retires

Professor Eugene Kremer, long-time faculty member of the Kansas State University Department of Architecture, has announced his August 2003 retirement.

After teaching at Washington University and in Portsmouth and London, England, Professor Kremer joined the faculty of the College of Architecture, Planning, and Design in 1973 as Head of the Department of Architecture. Throughout his 30-year tenure, Professor Kremer served as an able leader within the College, stepping forward to serve as Director of Program Development for the College in 1985 and once again as Head of the Department of Architecture in 1992. His mentorship of numerous colleagues in the areas of teaching, service, and scholarship has ensured a lasting legacy of outstanding teachers at Kansas State University and other institutions across the country and abroad.

“Beyond his other contributions, Eugene has played a unique role in the Department, one we will not be able to fill,” according to James S. Jones, current department head. “Over time, he has become ‘ambassador at large,’ effectively serving the Department in myriad capacities,” said Jones.

As an educator and advisor, Professor Kremer fostered in thousands of students a passion for learning and a desire to achieve excellence. For the past 25 years, he has been responsible for directing the highly acclaimed internship program of the Department of Architecture which has promoted strong and lasting relationships between practicing architects and the College’s students. Through his efforts and personal example, the profession of architecture in the State of Kansas and, indeed, in all of the states in which graduates of the College practice has been strengthened.

During a 2002 sabbatical leave, Professor Kremer was Scholar in Residence at the Washington, D.C. offices of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). His recent scholarship, focused on ethics in the design professions, has made important and timely contributions to the field. He has lectured before audiences in Washington, D.C., New York and San Diego, at the 2003 national convention of the AIA, on his landmark study of the Citicorp Center tower crisis.

The recipient of numerous awards, Professor Kremer received the 2002 Henry W. Schirmer Distinguished Service Award, the highest award bestowed by AIA Kansas. A member of the College of Fellows of the AIA, he is the past president of both AIA Kansas and AIA Flint Hills where he has worked on many important initiatives that will have lasting impact on the profession. He is also past national president of the Association of College Schools of Architecture and has chaired numerous committees on education and the profession.

Professor Kremer and his wife, University Distinguished Professor Lillian Kremer, will be moving to Arlington, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area where their sons, Michael and Ian, and their families reside. Professor Kremer’s definition of retirement is likely to include new initiatives that will continue to advance the profession of architecture. The faculty, staff and students of Kansas State University will miss Professor Kremer’s devotion, counsel and leadership.

Eugene was honored at our annual alumni reception in Kansas City on September 4. The American Institute of Architects Kansas City was co-sponsor of the event.

For more information, contact:

James S. Jones, 785.532.5952
Diane Potts, 785.532.1090