MSU architecture students awarded prestigious travel scholarships
Contact: Christie McNeal
STARKVILLE, Miss.—An architecture senior at ɫƵ will get the chance to broaden his global perspective through travel this summer with help from a $20,000 award.
Caleb A. McWhorter of Dawsonville, Georgia, is the university’s 2025 recipient of the Aydelott Travel Award, established by late Memphis architect Alfred Lewis Aydelott and his wife Hope Galloway Aydelott.
In addition, Evelin “Jo” Aguilar of Pearl, also a senior majoring in architecture, is receiving a $4,750 Trussell Travel Award sponsored by MSU School of Architecture alumnus Ted T. Porter.
Under the guidance of his faculty mentor Assistant Professor Duane McLemore, McWhorter will research how the planning, design and infrastructure of affordable housing affects the health of a community and the autonomy of residents in their housing decisions.
His itinerary includes studies of architect Walter Segal’s Walter’s Way Houses in London, England; Alejandro Aravena’s Quinta Monroy Housing in Iquique, Tarapacá, Chile; Prasanna Desai’s Slum Upgrade Project in Pune, Maharashtra, India; and Alvaro Siza’s Qunita da Malagueira in Evora, Portugal.
During his travels, McWhorter plans to look into the involvement of the community in the design process, the planning and organization of houses in the projects in relation to each other and their cities, and the attitudes and opinions of residents.
He said several of his architecture studios and courses helped drive his interest in this area of research.
“I have always had a passion for serving others, and everything that I do is based on my faith and desire to spread the love of God,” he said. “Through this lens I look to find out how architecture can be used to serve the needs and improve the lives of others, particularly by providing opportunities for people to have more control over their circumstances.”
McWhorter said quality, affordable homes are key.
“If you have a good home life and a good community of people for support around you, you are more likely to succeed,” he said, adding that he is excited to share his research findings with the School of Architecture and the broader architecture community and hopes to employ the strategies in his future practice.
“This award has given me a great opportunity to pursue my desire to serve others through architecture, and I hope to continue to learn and develop my design skills to better achieve that in the future,” he said. “I still am unsure of what my future career holds, but I hope to work in the realm of affordable housing, community-based architecture or disaster relief.”
Through Aguilar’s travels and research, she hopes to develop and improve the definition of accessible design in America. She will explore several buildings in Mexico, including la Centro de Invidentes y Débiles Visuales (The Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired) and la Biblioteca para Ciegos y Débiles Visuales (the Library for the Blind and Visually Impaired).
Aguilar’s research was inspired by Juhani Pallasmaa’s “The Eyes of the Skin.”
“I became enamored with his arguments against the ocular centric culture we have built as architects,” she said. “I found his descriptions of the body and our relations to the exterior world compelling as it highlights our shared experiences through our senses.”
“Travel is such an important experience for designers,” said School of Architecture Director and F.L. Crane Professor Karen Cordes Spence. “It allows them to understand different contexts, spaces and people in ways that cannot otherwise be known. I’m thrilled that our students have such wonderful travel opportunities.”
MSU’s School of Architecture offers the state’s only professional architecture degree accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board. Learn more at .
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