The College of Built Environments traces its history to 1914, when the Department of Architecture was founded. The department grew slowly and focused strictly on architecture until the early 1940s, when a city planning curriculum was inaugurated. After the Second World War, the architecture and planning programs grew rapidly. The College of Architecture and Urban Planning was established in 1957; Arthur Herrman was the first dean. Architecture and Urban Planning were established as separate departments within the CAUP by 1961; Landscape Architecture and Building Construction were established as departments later in the 1960s. In 2017 the program in Real Estate, initially housed in the Department of Urban Design & Planning, became the Runstad Department of Real Estate. Other degrees and programs were added in the last fifty years, for example the Ph.D. in the Built Environment in 2003. In 2007 the faculty of the college began searching for a new name. The Regents of the University of Washington approved the name in fall 2008. The College of Built Environments name became official in January 2009.
Facilities
The College is housed in Gould Hall, Architecture Hall, and several smaller structures. The College has multiple facilities for supporting the work of students, faculty, and staff, including the Fabrications Labs, the Digital Commons, and the Visual Resources Collection. The Built Environments Library, a unit of the University of Washington Libraries is housed on the third floor of Gould Hall.
Departments, Programs, and Administration
The five CBE departments offer degrees in architecture, landscape architecture, construction management, urban planning and real estate. The College offers a college-wide Ph.D. in the Built Environment, and participates in an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Planning. Two interdisciplinary certificate programs are shared by multiple departments across the college: Urban Design and Historic Preservation. The CBE is led by Dean Renée Cheng who is advised by several Associate Deans. The Dean heads the CBE Executive Committee which includes the Associate Deans, the Department Chairs, and other administrative and staff leaders in the college. The Dean is also advised by the College Council, the elected faculty council. The College Council provides a structure for direct faculty input at the highest level of college administration. The CBE also has a college-wide Staff Council and a college-wide Student Council, vehicles for staff and student participation in college governance.
