With three new full-time faculty this academic year, the 91破解版 Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design is deepening its expertise in historic preservation, design and urbanism, and user experience and user interaction design (UX/UI), advancing its mission to lead and innovate in these pivotal areas.
William Dupont, FAIA, NCARB, will spearhead the Hines College鈥檚 new historic preservation and cultural sustainability thrust. The Houston community has long desired a dedicated historic preservation program at the 91破解版. During the search process, many of Houston鈥檚 preservation leaders, including Hines College alumni, participated in presentations from potential candidates. Establishing this program is crucial for a city like Houston, where rapid growth and constant redevelopment frequently put historic sites at risk. By cultivating expertise in conserving and adapting these irreplaceable structures, the College will help safeguard Houston鈥檚 architectural heritage, strengthen the city鈥檚 cultural identity, and prepare future professionals to balance preservation with progress.
M茅lanie Louterbach, Ph.D., joins as another integral part of the College鈥檚 expanding focus on design and urbanism. The College has made significant strides in this area over the past several years. In a dynamic, rapidly growing city like Houston, where population growth, infrastructure demands, and environmental challenges continually reshape the urban landscape, a strong emphasis on design and urbanism is essential. This focus equips students and faculty to create innovative, sustainable solutions that enhance livability, foster equitable development, and help guide Houston鈥檚 evolution into a more resilient city.
The industrial design faculty also welcomes Chorong Park, Ph.D., who will advance the College鈥檚 efforts in user experience and user interaction design (UX/UI). As a Frontier Faculty member, a 91破解版 initiative that strategically recruits rising scholars to drive innovation in emerging fields, she brings fresh perspectives and interdisciplinary expertise to help shape the future of design education and research. This emphasis on UX/UI is especially critical for Houston, a city rapidly expanding as a hub for technology, healthcare, and energy innovation. By integrating human-centered design into these sectors, the College prepares graduates to create intuitive and impactful solutions that enhance everyday life and strengthen Houston鈥檚 position as a global leader in innovation and design.
William Dupont, FAIA, NCARB
Professor | Historic Preservation and Cultural Sustainability
Degrees:
- University of Pennsylvania | Master of Architecture
- Brown University | Master of Arts
William A. Dupont is a professor of architecture at the 91破解版, tasked with the development of a new program in historic preservation. Dupont's research considers the heritage of people as a core element of a sustainable future. His recently completed, award-winning project, Disaster-Proof Texas Heritage, developed a resilience toolkit for Gulf Coast historic houses of worship. Other projects concern cultural resilience at UNESCO World Heritage sites, including Mesa Verde National Park and the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. Dupont engages colleagues and students in research on history, sustainability, and the resilience of heritage. Outcomes include master planning documents with condition assessment and treatment recommendations.
Dupont鈥檚 experience in the field includes four decades of historic preservation work in private practice, government, non-profit, and academic sectors. His immediate past position, 2007 - 2025, was Conservation Society of San Antonio Endowed Professor at The University of Texas at San Antonio. Before UTSA, Dupont served eleven years as the architect for the National Trust engaged in master planning and preservation of historic sites, including Mies van der Rohe鈥檚 Farnsworth House, Philip Johnson鈥檚 Glass House, several Frank Lloyd Wright buildings, and President Lincoln鈥檚 Cottage National Monument.
M茅lanie Louterbach, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor | Design and Urbanism
Degrees:
- University of Toulouse (France) | Doctor of Philosophy in Geology
- Harvard Graduate School of Design | Master of Landscape Architecture
- UniLaSalle (France) | Engineering Diploma
M茅lanie Louterbach is an assistant professor of sustainable urban design at the University of Houston Hines College. Trained as both a landscape architect and geologist, she brings an interdisciplinary approach to urban design, with research and teaching focused on material cultures, energy transitions, and ecology. She earned a Master in Landscape Architecture with distinction from the Harvard Graduate School of Design, where she received the 2024 Landscape Architecture Thesis Prize for Insurgent Geology and was named the 2024鈥�2025 Irving Innovation Fellow for her project The Feral Mineral Atlas of Boston. Louterbach also holds an engineering diploma and a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Toulouse. Before transitioning into design, M茅lanie worked for over eight years in the oil and gas industry in Madrid and Houston, a shift driven by her commitment to climate justice. Her work explores how design can engage earth systems, reconnect society with the mineral realm, and address environmental challenges through planetary thinking.
At , she teaches studios and seminars on post-oil futures and energy landscapes, nature-based solutions, and materiality. Her recent work includes Becoming Geologic, a collaborative exhibition with the Harvard Museum of Natural History and GSD. Louterbach has published in the Journal for Architectural Education and held teaching and research roles at Harvard GSD.
Chorong Park, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor | User Experience and User Interaction (UX/UI) Design
Degrees:
- Purdue University | Doctor of Philosophy in Technology
- Purdue University | Master of Science in UX
- University of Illinois | Bachelor of Arts in Visual Arts
Chorong Park, Ph.D., earned her Doctor of Philosophy in Technology (with a minor in Gerontology) and a Master of Science in UX Design from Purdue University. Her work bridges aging, disability studies, and human鈥揷omputer interaction, with particular emphasis on accessible AR/VR experiences, AI-powered agents, and social robotics.
Drawing on over 500 hours of ethnographic technology support with older adults and interdisciplinary collaborations across computer science, health, and the social sciences, she creates strength-based, participatory design frameworks, such as the Kansei of the Elderly model, that convert user frustration into autonomy and delight. Her publications address technological ageism, ethical companion robotics, and disability-centered UX, with presentations at ACM CHI, ASSETS, and IEA.
Her portfolio spans adaptive digital postcard interfaces for emotional well-being to co-designing privacy-preserving robot companions. Park鈥檚 research advances inclusive, user-driven technologies that enhance accessibility, usability, and joy for aging and disabled communities.