Study Architecture 
ProPEL March 26-28, 2026 | CHICAGO, IL
114th Annual Meeting
Convergence/Divergence:
Designing Futures in Architecture and Education
Call for Full Papers, Design Projects & Short Papers
Submission Deadline: September 17, 2025
UPDATE FOR ACSA114
Authors may submit one of three types of work for double-blind peer review: Full Papers, Design Projects, or Short Papers. Authors whose submissions receive high ratings will be invited to present at the in-person conference and have their work published in the conference proceedings.
Eligibility
Educators, Practitioners, Researchers and Students are all encouraged to submit. You do not need to be an ACSA member to submit. If you already have an ACSA account, please log into the website to complete your online submission HERE. If you do not have an ACSA account, please create one online HERE. You may also request access by contacting ACSA directly.
Timeline
September 17, 2025 | Submission Deadline |
Sept.- Oct. 2025 | Peer-Review |
November 2025 | Author Notification |
January 2026 | Final Submission Due |
March 26-28, 2026 | 114th Annual Meeting |
Annual Meeting Topics
The Annual Meeting Committee will maintain topics year to year in order to address the diversity of our members scholarly, creative and pedagogic interests. This consistent and, we hope, inclusive list of topics will also ensure an annual venue for all members to submit to an ACSA conference. The topics, described below, are intended to be encompassing, relevant and predictable and, at times, may overlap with each other.
Building Science and Technology
Emerging and traditional areas of building science and construction technology including, but not limited to topics such as: building enclosures; structures; energy; materials; heating, cooling, and ventilation; acoustics; lighting; water; and the environmental impact of construction and the operation of buildings.
Design
Processes of making architecture, including, but not limited to topics such as: fabrication; design-build; representation and media; discursive images; typologies including housing; design process; interdisciplinary or collaborative design; as well as built and unbuilt work.
Digital Technology
Digital and computational processes related to design methods and contemporary architectural production that reflect on the potential of digital technologies in design research, practice and pedagogy including, but not limited to topics such as: computation; digital fabrication; generative design; robotics; responsive systems and environments; augmented and virtual reality; artificial intelligence; and machine learning.
Ecology
Interactions of architecture with our planet’s systems and more immediate ecosystems, including, but not limited to topics such as: life-cycle analysis; landscape architecture; resilience; adaptive reuse; biophilic design; and regenerative design.
Health
Architectural application of research findings and user-derived knowledge to tackle health inequalities and improve well-being outcomes across the spectrum of health vulnerabilities and building types, including, but not limited to topics such as: human comfort and productivity; quality of life and well-being; environmental and social determinates of health; indoor environmental quality; urban health; air pollution; light; strategies to temper water, moisture and temperature; safety; aging-in-place; and innovative healthcare environments.
History, Theory, Criticism
History, theory, or criticism as disciplines in their own right, or as tools to advance understanding of pedagogy, the profession, and design practices, broadly defined.
Pedagogy
Methodologies and practice of teaching in architecture and design fields; the origins, strategies, and influences on students of different approaches to instruction and learning, including, but not limited to application of new tools, methods and methodologies in architectural education and the assessment and evolution of these, as well as student learning outcomes.
Practice
Architecture’s professional focus and its intersection with construction and development, including, but not limited to topics such as: firm management and leadership; project management; interdisciplinary collaboration; ethics and professional judgement; legal issues; programming; accessibility; life safety; economics; construction; prefabrication and modular construction; building codes; and licensure.
Society + Community
Community-engaged scholarship, also referred to as public interest design, including engagement in partnerships with non-profit organizations that support specific communities or social challenges, including, but not limited to planning; programming; housing; climate change; public facilities; public space; and other topics that address complex social relationships through architectural scholarship.
Urbanism
The role of architecture in the urban environment including the distinctions between private and public, individual and social spaces, incorporating buildings and public space in a variety of scales and densities, including but not limited to infrastructure and networks; smart cities; smart growth; new urbanism; urban design, geography, and planning; and transportation.
Submission Types & Requirements
Authors may submit full papers, design projects or short papers. Submissions to the Annual Meeting will be accepted on all topics that contribute to architecture research and do not need to be tied to an overarching conference theme. All submissions will go though the double blind peer review process.
FULL PAPER
A full paper refers to a complete, detailed examination of research, including methodology, results, and discussion. Complete original research that presents substantial and well-supported findings.
- Full Papers are to be 2500-4000 words, excluding the abstract (no longer than 500 words), title and endnotes.
- Up to 5 images (optional) included in your PDF paper submission.
- Peer-reviewed: Papers will go through the double blind peer review process.
- Accepted Papers will be included in the conference for presentation.
- Accepted Paper will be published in the conference proceedings. (up to 4,000 words and up to 5 images).
- Full Paper can be formatted using the conference template for peer-review, though this is not required. Download the full paper template below:
DESIGN PROJECT
A design project refers to a comprehensive design-based contribution that demonstrates innovation, creativity, and practical or theoretical relevance accompanied by visual materials like images and diagrams.
- Design projects are to be up to 1000 words, excluding the project title and endnotes.
- Up to 10 images included in your PDF project submission.
- Peer-reviewed: Design Projects will go through the double blind peer review process.
- Accepted Design Projects will be included in the conference for presentation.
- Accepted Design Projects will be published in the conference proceedings (up to 1000 words and up to 10 images).
- Design Project can be formatted using the conference template for peer-review, though this is not required. Download the design project template below:
SHORT PAPER
A short paper is a concise research contribution that presents promising ideas, preliminary results, scholarly exploration or novel concepts. Intended to encourage the sharing of early-stage work, innovative approaches, or practical insights that can stimulate discussion and further development of work in progress.
- Short Papers should be 1,000–1,500 words, excluding the abstract title and endnotes.
- Up to 5 images (optional) included in your PDF Short Paper.
- Peer-reviewed: Short Papers will go through the double blind peer review process.
- Accepted Short Papers will be included in the conference for presentation.
- Accepted Short Papers will be given the option to be included in the conference proceedings (up to 1000 words and up to 5 images).
- Even if the Short Paper is published in the proceedings, it can serve as a starting point for further research. Any future submission— to a journal of the Long Paper category—can build upon it by incorporating 60% new content. This may mean expanding the scope, introducing new data, or additional analysis of the initial findings.
- Short papers can be formatted using the conference template for peer-review, though this is not required. Download the short paper template below:
Submission Requirements (for all submissions)
- Submissions must be prepared for anonymous review (remove author/contributor names and affiliation identification and blind any images that can identify the author(s))
- Submissions must be uploaded in PDF format, including the text and any images.
- Authors select what submission type (full paper, design project, or short paper).
- Authors select primary & secondary tracks and 3 ranked keywords based on ACSA’s Index of Scholarship
- Submissions must be written in English.
- Submissions must report on recently completed work, and submissions cannot have been previously published or presented in public except to a regional audience.
- An author may present no more than two submissions at the Annual Meeting. No Individual may be listed as a co-author on more than two submissions.
How to Submit
Authors must submit through the ACSA online interface. All submitting authors must have an ACSA account. If you are not an ACSA member or do not have an account, you can create an account here.
Follow the steps below to complete your submission. The ACSA online interface will guide you through the remaining steps.
- Log in using your ACSA username and password. Click here if you forgot your password.
- Click the Enter Now button.
- Select ACSA 114 from the dropdown menu and click the “Create New Submission” button. Here you will see five tabs (Authors, Submission Details, Submission, Proofread, & Submit), all of which need to be completed.
- Author Tab: Click “Add Myself as Author” and then add co-authors, if applicable. Click save & continue. To do this you will search for the authors First and Last Names and then select the author and click “Add Author and Continue”. To Add an author that is not already in the system, Click “Add New Author” and fill out the required fields and then click “Add Author”.
- Submission Details: On the submission detail page, Select your Submission Type (Full Paper, Project or Short Paper); Primary & Secondary Topics (to see full description of Annual Meeting Topics, see above). Three additional ranked keywords based on ACSA’s research areas used in the Index of Scholarship. Click save & continue.
- Submission: On submission page, fill in the text box for your title, select your pdf of your submission and Check-off the Blinded Submission question, “Confirm that your submission is prepared in a way that does not expose any identifying information. Identifying information most commonly refers to authors’ names and institutions, as well as any photos of the authors”. (this is good time to make sure your submission is blinded) and click save & continue.
- Proofread: On the Proofread page you have the opportunity to review your work before finalizing your submission.
- Submit: Click Submit. You have completed your submission and should receive a confirmation email for verification.
Publication & Presentation
Accepted submissions are asked to submit their final submission for publication and are required to complete a copyright transfer form for the conference proceedings and agree to present the submission at the Annual Meeting. Final submissions will be due in January 2026 before the conference.
Please Note: If your submission is accepted, the original submission type (Full Paper/Design Project/Short Paper) cannot be changed for the final submission.
Sessions will be composed of full papers, design projects & short papers when possible, allowing for both scholarly and applied research to mutually demonstrate impact. Research sessions will be organized through a bottom-up process based on submission content rather than a top-down approach where session topics are determined in advance in response to a theme. Each session will have a moderator, who will coordinate with authors regarding session guidelines as well as the general expectations for the session in advance. Accepted authors will have approximately 10-minutes to present in a session at the Annual Meeting in March 2026.
It is ACSA policy that accepted authors must pay full conference registration for the Annual Meeting in order to be included in the conference presentation and proceedings. ACSA reserves the right to withhold a submission from the program if the author fails to comply with guidelines, including deadlines and requests for submission of materials.
Peer-Review Process
The Reviews Committee is composed of experts, especially those engaged in affiliated organizations, and structured by the ten topics. The Reviews Committee oversees the peer-review process, which includes matching reviewer’s expertise with that of the submission.
Authors will select 2 topics as well as three ranked keywords to their submission, in order to facilitate the matching process. All submissions will go though the double blinded peer-review process and be reviewed by at least three reviewers and those reviewers will provide constructive comments that advance the effort and improve the review experience for both reviewers and reviewees.
The Review Committee makes final acceptance decisions. All authors will be notified of the status of their submission and will receive comments from their reviewers. Final acceptance of the submission translates to presentation at the conference and inclusion in the Proceedings. Research Sessions will be composed of both papers and projects, when possible, allowing for both scholarly and applied research to mutually demonstrate impact.
Conference Partners
Questions
Michelle Sturges
Conferences Manager
202-785-2324
msturges@acsa-arch.org
Eric W. Ellis
Sr. Director of Operations and Programs
202-785-2324
eellis@acsa-arch.org
