(Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Sacramento, CA.) The California Architectural Foundation (CAF) and American Institute of Architects California are honored to announce the recipients of 2025 Paul W. Welch, Jr. ARE Scholarship.
The program was created to celebrate Paul W. Welch, Jr.’s unwavering belief in the power of the architectural license. Recipients are reimbursed for the cost of passing each division of the Architect Registration Examination and the California Supplement Exam.
This year three AIA Associate members and one AIA Student member are being recognized: Erica Buitrago, Assoc. AIA; Matthew Haak, AIAS; Payton Narancic, Assoc. AIA; and Marco Zhou, Assoc. AIA. While still in early stages of their architectural journey—Haak was awarded while a student—each has demonstrated elevated commitment to the profession. The four now share a collective accolade, but each of the 2025 recipients demonstrates unique paths to the profession.
“I am humbled by Erica, Matthew, Payton, and Marco’s early attainments and understanding of the role of the architect,” said Paul W. Welch, Jr., who funds the scholarship and served as AIA California’s Executive Vice President for over four decades. “Each has already excelled, and each has extended beyond academic or practice interests into larger issues of supporting communities, sustainability, or the field as a whole.”
Erica Buitrago, Assoc AIA
As a student, Erica Buitrago, Assoc. AIA, did not receive any support from her family, instead she managed financial challenges along with the demanding requirements of a student. As a designer, she has already chosen to improve the lives of the most vulnerable people in America through architecture. “When I asked Erica why becoming licensed is so important to her, she said that paving the way for women and people of color to become architects has been a personal goal ever since she began her architectural career,” noted her nominator from the Bureau of Architecture at San Francisco Public Works.
Jury Notes: Erica’s story of pursuing architecture as an outsider is compelling and her work in the public sector on projects that address the needs of San Francisco’s homeless community is important and clearly benefits from the insights of an architect with her lived experience. We believe that a Welsh Scholarship will truly make a lasting difference for her career and for the people she serves.
Matthew Haak, AIAS
An Integrated Path to Licensure (IPAL) student, with his Architectural Education Program (AXP) complete, Matthew Haak, AIAS, has begun studying for his exams while still in school and could be USC Architecture’s first IPAL student to graduate with a license. His passion for architecture stems from a core belief in the power of architects to shape communities, influence well-being, and respond creatively to human needs.
Jury Notes: Matthew’s application demonstrates excellent professional communication ability with an essay that focuses on the value of licensure and plans to achieve it that align with the purpose of the Welch Scholarship. The opportunity to achieve a “first” in completing licensure before completing the USC M. Arch. program is noteworthy and could server to inspire other students. The jury is impressed that he is sharing his drive by helping his peers in the IPAL program.
Payton Narancic, Assoc. AIA
As part of her AXP hours, Payton Narancic, Assoc. AIA, led construction administration on the Sierra Institute Modular Mass Timer Homes, and project that required her to work in a remote rural area, traveling up to two hours to the site in heavy winter snow conditions, masterfully overcoming these and significant other challenges presented by the site. “Her project management and communication skills, balancing non-profit foundations, rural contractors, and native tribal members is some of the most seamless and professional I have encountered,” said her AXP supervisor, a firm Principal.
Jury Notes: When you look at someone’s achievement in graduate school, there’s nothing higher than publishing a research paper, which Payton did. There’s also a consistent aesthetic to the work, her portfolio was really beautiful, with a focus on sustainability. Her notably mature and focused submission explains her deep interest in architecture that evokes and uses materials of the forest.
Marco Zhou, Assoc. AIA
Marco Zhou, Assoc. AIA, has already structured his practice of architecture to include activities beyond the academic and the firm. At Cal Poly Pomona, he earned the Alpha Rho Chi Bronze Medal for leadership, Outstanding Graduating Design Student award, and recognition in the CPPARC Studio Outstanding Design Awards, all while actively participating in NOMAS and AIAS. Now graduated, he is already an active voice of AIA Los Angeles’s Emerging Professionals Committee. This interest in span of experience is reflected in his work for firms: which ranges from Walt Disney Imagineering, to SOM to hands-on fabrication at TOLO Architecture.
Jury Notes: The jury admires Marco’s record of design achievement in architecture school, internships, a career position, and completion of some Architectural Registration Exam (ARE) divisions and were impressed with the professionalism and maturity demonstrated in his submittal materials.
The 2025 Welch Scholarship Jury was composed of: Ginger Thompson, AIA; Christine Theodoropoulos, AIA; Heather Reeves; Paul Welch, Hon. AIA; Michael Hamner, FAIA; and Scott Callihan.
About The California Architectural Foundation
The California Architectural Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting excellence in architecture through scholarships, grants, and educational programs—bridging the gap between the academic and professional worlds. CAF exists to provide a mechanism for members of the AIA and the general public to contribute to an organization with a great benefit to society.
