Fall 2026 Oscar Ekdahl Lecture Series
The College of Architecture, Planning & Design (APDesign) at Kansas State University will convene national thought leaders, practitioners, policymakers, faculty, students and community partners for the 2026 Ekdahl Symposium, Housing Matters: Design, Policy, and Development, Sept. 22–24, in Regnier Hall.
The symposium will explore one of the nation's most pressing and complex challenges: housing. Questions of affordability, attainability, equity, sustainability and quality of life increasingly intersect with design, public policy, economic development and community planning. Addressing these issues requires collaboration across disciplines and sectors—a principle that serves as the foundation for this year's Ekdahl Symposium.
Presented by APDesign, Housing Matters will examine the future of housing through the interconnected lenses of design, policy and development while highlighting the work of Kansas State University's Better Housing Consortium and the Kansas City Design Center. Through keynote presentations, panel discussions, workshops and student engagement opportunities, participants will explore how designers, planners, developers, policymakers and community leaders can work together to create more attainable, resilient and equitable housing futures.
"Housing is not simply about buildings—it is about people, communities and opportunity," said Michael McClure, dean of the College of Architecture, Planning & Design. "At APDesign, we believe universities have an important role to play in bringing together the disciplines and perspectives needed to address today's housing challenges. The Ekdahl Symposium provides an opportunity to engage nationally recognized leaders while showcasing the innovative work being done by our faculty, students and partners across Kansas and beyond."
The symposium opens Tuesday, Sept. 22, with a welcome reception in the Regnier Atrium, followed by opening remarks from McClure and presentations highlighting housing-focused initiatives at APDesign. Faculty and representatives from the Better Housing Consortium will share current research initiatives and community partnerships, while the Kansas City Design Center will present housing-focused studios, urban design investigations and regional collaborations.
Wednesday's programming will begin with housing roundtables featuring invited guests, Better Housing Consortium partners, Kansas City Design Center collaborators, faculty researchers, community organizations, public officials and industry leaders. The working sessions will focus on housing challenges facing Kansas and the Midwest.
The afternoon keynote series will feature nationally recognized voices in housing, design and community development, including:
- Matthew Porreca, principal at LPA Design Studios, who will present Housing at Scale: Design Innovation and Delivery, examining how design excellence, interdisciplinary collaboration and emerging delivery models can improve housing production and community outcomes.
- Karla Sierralta, professor and architect at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, who will discuss Housing, Community, and Resilience, exploring how community-engaged design and cultural context can create more resilient and sustainable housing futures.
- Abby Newsham, AICP, is a Kansas City-based urban planner and designer whose work focuses on community development, incremental growth and the creation of sustainable, human-scaled neighborhoods. Her professional interests include housing, small-scale development, transit-supportive development and strategies that give local residents and entrepreneurs greater opportunities to invest in their communities.
Newsham's presentation will provide a regional perspective on housing in Kansas City and the Midwest, exploring housing development, implementation, neighborhood-scale solutions, partnerships and opportunities to expand attainable housing.
The keynote presentations will culminate in a featured conversation moderated by a housing and community development leader, addressing topics including housing affordability and attainability, community-centered design, public-private partnerships, housing resilience, rural and urban housing challenges, and the evolving role of universities in addressing housing issues.
"Whether in urban neighborhoods, small towns or rural communities, housing is foundational to economic vitality and quality of life," McClure said. "By bringing together experts in design, planning, policy and development, we hope to inspire new partnerships and actionable ideas that can make a meaningful difference in our communities."
Additional programming on Thursday, Sept. 24, will include student and faculty conversations with symposium speakers, interdisciplinary workshops exploring future collaborations among APDesign, the Better Housing Consortium and regional partners, and a closing luncheon summarizing symposium outcomes and identifying next steps for future Housing Matters initiatives.
Established through the generosity of the Ekdahl family, the Ekdahl Distinguished Lecture Series and Symposium has become a hallmark of APDesign's commitment to advancing discourse on the built environment. The 2026 symposium continues that tradition by addressing a challenge that touches every community and profession represented within the college.
Faculty, students, practitioners, policymakers, developers and community members are encouraged to attend.
5:00 PM | Welcome | Regnier Atrium
5:30 PM | Opening Remarks by Michael A. McClure, Dean | Regnier Forum
Brief remarks on why housing matters and the importance of interdisciplinary approaches to housing at APDesign.
5:45 PM | Housing Matters at APDesign
Better Housing Consortium
A brief presentation highlighting student work, faculty research, partnerships, and current housing initiatives.
Kansas City Design Center
A brief presentation highlighting student housing investigations, urban design work, and community partnerships.
6:15–7:30 PM | Reception Begins | Regnier Atrium
Informal conversation among invited guests, students, faculty, alumni, practitioners, and regional partners.
9:00–11:30 AM | Housing Roundtable | The Ekdahl | For faculty & regional partners
A working conversation with Matthew Porreca, Karla Sierralta, Abby Newsham, Better Housing Consortium and KCDC representatives, APDesign faculty, and regional partners.
Guiding question:
What are the most important housing challenges that design education, research, policy, and practice can help address?
The session will explore issues facing Kansas, Kansas City, and communities throughout the Midwest and identify opportunities for collaboration among universities, communities, government, and practice.
11:30 AM–12:30 PM | Lunch
Wednesday Featured Symposium | All welcome
12:30 PM | Welcome + Introduction
Introduction of the featured guests and the afternoon program.
12:40 PM | Featured Lecture
Matthew Porreca, FAIA, LEED ,AP BD+C, NCARB
Housing at Scale: Design Innovation and Delivery
A practice-based perspective on design excellence, housing production, interdisciplinary collaboration, sustainability, and the challenges of delivering housing at scale.
1:30 PM | Featured Lecture
Professor Karla Sierralta, AIA
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Housing, Community, and Resilience
Housing considered through community-engaged design, cultural context, resilience, equity, and design education.
2:20 PM | Break
Opportunity to view the Better Housing Consortium and Kansas City Design Center exhibitions.
2:40 PM | Featured Lecture
Abby Newsham, AICP
Stronger Communities, Better Housing
A perspective on housing affordability, incremental development, neighborhood-scale change, regulatory barriers, and creating more adaptable and resilient communities.
3:30 PM | Break
3:45–4:45 PM | Featured Conversation
Why Housing Matters: Design, Policy, and Development
Matthew Porreca
Karla Sierralta
Abby Newsham
Moderated by:
Timothy Schuler
Director, Institute for Community Design & Research
An interdisciplinary conversation bringing together the three perspectives presented during the afternoon—design and delivery, community and resilience, and planning and incremental development.
Topics may include:
- Housing affordability and attainability
- Design quality and housing production
- Incremental and missing-middle development
- Community-centered housing
- Density and changing housing types
- Resilience and sustainability
- Policy and regulatory barriers
- Urban, small-town, and rural housing
- The relationship among design, planning, policy, and development
- The role of universities in advancing housing solutions
Audience questions will be incorporated into the latter portion of the conversation.
4:45 PM | Closing Remarks
9:00 AM–10:30 AM | Faculty Research Exchange | The Ekdahl | Associate Dean, Katie Kingery-Page, Moderator | For Faculty and invited guests
Short presentations and conversations highlighting current APDesign housing research, followed by discussion and responses from the invited guests.
The session provides an opportunity to connect faculty expertise with the issues raised during Wednesday's symposium and identify potential collaborations.
From Conversation to Action
10:45–Noon | Housing Futures Workshop | Regnier Forum | Professor Michael Gibson, Moderator
A working session with Porreca, Sierralta, Better Housing Consortium leadership, KCDC, ICDR, APDesign faculty, and regional partners.
The discussion will identify opportunities for future research, interdisciplinary studios, community partnerships, and applied projects emerging from Housing Matters.
Noon–1:15 PM | Lunch with Students + Faculty | Regnier Forum | By invitation
An informal opportunity for students and faculty to continue conversations with the symposium guests.
1:30–4:00 PM | APDesign Studio Visits + Student Engagement | Led by Professor Michael Gibson
Matthew Porreca, Karla Sierralta, will visit studios and learning environments throughout APDesign, engaging directly with students from all disciplines in the college.
Guests may divide among studios and rotate throughout the afternoon, creating opportunities for smaller groups of students to interact directly with them.
Activities may include project reviews and informal critiques, discussions of current student work, conversations about professional practice and research, career and leadership discussions, and interdisciplinary conversations about the contributions each field can make toward better housing and stronger communities.
4:30–5:00 PM | Closing Conversation
What Did We Learn—and What Comes Next?
Brief reflections from Matthew Porreca, Karla Sierralta, followed by student and faculty responses.
The conversation will identify ideas that can carry forward through the Better Housing Consortium, Kansas City Design Center, Institute for Community Design & Research, future studios, faculty research, and community partnerships, as well as opportunities for future Housing Matters programming.
5:00 PM | Symposium Concludes