12th Annual Fall Fête
Friends House Party Saturday September 27, 2025
Benefactors Dinner Wednesday October 15, 2025
Thank you for joining us for two fundraising events celebrating 12 years of the IPA’s design-driven initiatives addressing social, physical, and environmental inequities in our city. Both events were held at the IPA's Block House on Governors Island – a 10-minute ferry ride from downtown Manhattan.
Friends House Party | Saturday September 27, 2025
Our biggest party yet - learn more about our amazing collaborators and see photos from the night here.
Benefactors Dinner | Wednesday October 15, 2025
A spectacular dinner by award-winning food-focused artist Zacarias Gonzalez.
Friends House Party | Saturday September 27, 2025
Our biggest party yet - learn more about our amazing collaborators and see photos from the night here.
Benefactors Dinner | Wednesday October 15, 2025
A spectacular dinner by award-winning food-focused artist Zacarias Gonzalez.
Our 2025 Honorees
Michelle de la Uz is the Executive Director of Fifth Avenue Committee, Inc. (FAC), a leading community development organization based in Brooklyn, New York. With over 25 years of experience in public and community service, Michelle has built a distinguished career focused on advancing the welfare of low- and moderate-income people and communities in New York City. Under her leadership, FAC has become a driving force in supporting over 7,500 New Yorkers annually, overseeing $32 million in annual budgets for FAC and its affiliates and an impressive portfolio of real estate assets exceeding $263 million. With an affordable housing development pipeline that includes over 2,000 units and represents over $1 billion in total investment, she has played a pivotal role in expanding affordable housing opportunities in New York City. Notably, FAC became a member of NeighborWorks America, the Hispanic Federation and the National Association of Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB) under her stewardship, further solidifying its impact and reach.
Before joining FAC, Michelle served as Program Director for the Center for Urban Community Services (CUCS) sites in Washington Heights and Harlem, where she worked to address the needs of formerly homeless individuals. She also held the position of Director of Constituent Services for Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, where she helped advocate for transportation, environmental justice, immigration reform, and workforce development policies.
Michelle is the first in her working-class immigrant family to graduate from college and has been recognized for her leadership and advocacy. She is an alumna of Connecticut College, Columbia University, and Harvard Kennedy School’s Executive Education Program. Michelle has been honored with the Ford Foundation’s Leadership for a Changing World award.
Michelle’s leadership extends beyond her role at FAC. She serves on several prominent boards, including on the Joint Operating Entity (JOE) and Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development (ANHD) Boards, the National Board of Directors for the Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC), and the Community Advisory Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. She was also appointed as a City Planning Commissioner for the New York City Planning Commission, where she served from 2012 to 2021. In addition, Michelle co-chairs the New York Housing Conference, a vital platform for housing advocacy in New York.
A fierce advocate for equity and community empowerment, Michelle continues to inspire and lead initiatives that create lasting, positive change in the lives of New Yorkers.
Before joining FAC, Michelle served as Program Director for the Center for Urban Community Services (CUCS) sites in Washington Heights and Harlem, where she worked to address the needs of formerly homeless individuals. She also held the position of Director of Constituent Services for Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, where she helped advocate for transportation, environmental justice, immigration reform, and workforce development policies.
Michelle is the first in her working-class immigrant family to graduate from college and has been recognized for her leadership and advocacy. She is an alumna of Connecticut College, Columbia University, and Harvard Kennedy School’s Executive Education Program. Michelle has been honored with the Ford Foundation’s Leadership for a Changing World award.
Michelle’s leadership extends beyond her role at FAC. She serves on several prominent boards, including on the Joint Operating Entity (JOE) and Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development (ANHD) Boards, the National Board of Directors for the Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC), and the Community Advisory Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. She was also appointed as a City Planning Commissioner for the New York City Planning Commission, where she served from 2012 to 2021. In addition, Michelle co-chairs the New York Housing Conference, a vital platform for housing advocacy in New York.
A fierce advocate for equity and community empowerment, Michelle continues to inspire and lead initiatives that create lasting, positive change in the lives of New Yorkers.
Maria Perbellini is the Dean of the School of Architecture and Design at the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) and a tenured Professor of Architecture.
Before joining NYIT, Perbellini held key academic leadership roles at Texas Tech University (TTU), where she served as Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Chair of Instruction in the College of Architecture. She has also taught at the University of Texas at Austin and served as a visiting faculty member at Yeungjin Junior College in Taegu, South Korea.
Perbellini is the co-founder of Pongratz Perbellini Architects, an internationally recognized, multidisciplinary design practice. The atelier operated across a spectrum of award-winning built projects, international competitions, design research, computational studies, and advanced material-based fabrication technologies. Prior to establishing her own firm, she worked in New York City for Peter Eisenman and John Reimnitz on prestigious commissioned projects and high-profile design competitions. Pongratz Perbellini Architects received the Segnalazione Premio Compasso d’Oro ADI (XXI Edition) for their patented stone series Hyperwave, which is also included in the Material Connexion archive in New York.
Her contributions to architectural education and practice have received awards and honors, including the AIA Long Island Educator Award, the World Urban Campaign UN-Habitat City Changer recognition, the Integrated Scholar Award from TTU’s Office of the Provost, the TTU Outstanding Researcher Award, the Alumni Association New Faculty Award, and the Global Vision Award.
Perbellini has held curatorial and advisory roles at the Venice Architecture Biennale, serving on the Advisory Board of the Italian Pavilion (2021), co-curating the section Architecture as a Caregiver, acting as Creative Director for the Virtual Italian Pavilion, and curating the collateral event Students as Researchers (2023). She is a member of the NYC Architecture Biennial Advisory Board, the NYCxDesign Steering Committee, and served on the AIA NY Board of Directors as the 2024 Public Director for Educational Affairs and on the AIA NY Design Awards Committee.
A selection of scholarly work includes co-editing Peter Eisenman: Monograph for Korean Architects-KA (No.156, 1997) and Heliopolis 21 (Skira, 2021), as well as co-authoring Natural Born CaaDesigners (Birkhäuser, 2000), Cyberstone (Edilstampa, 2009), Digital Media for Design (Cognella, 2016), and Resilient Communities and the Peccioli Charter (Springer, 2021).
She holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia in Italy and a Master of Architecture from Pratt Institute in New York. She also completed the Harvard Management Development Program in Higher Education Leadership.
Before joining NYIT, Perbellini held key academic leadership roles at Texas Tech University (TTU), where she served as Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Chair of Instruction in the College of Architecture. She has also taught at the University of Texas at Austin and served as a visiting faculty member at Yeungjin Junior College in Taegu, South Korea.
Perbellini is the co-founder of Pongratz Perbellini Architects, an internationally recognized, multidisciplinary design practice. The atelier operated across a spectrum of award-winning built projects, international competitions, design research, computational studies, and advanced material-based fabrication technologies. Prior to establishing her own firm, she worked in New York City for Peter Eisenman and John Reimnitz on prestigious commissioned projects and high-profile design competitions. Pongratz Perbellini Architects received the Segnalazione Premio Compasso d’Oro ADI (XXI Edition) for their patented stone series Hyperwave, which is also included in the Material Connexion archive in New York.
Her contributions to architectural education and practice have received awards and honors, including the AIA Long Island Educator Award, the World Urban Campaign UN-Habitat City Changer recognition, the Integrated Scholar Award from TTU’s Office of the Provost, the TTU Outstanding Researcher Award, the Alumni Association New Faculty Award, and the Global Vision Award.
Perbellini has held curatorial and advisory roles at the Venice Architecture Biennale, serving on the Advisory Board of the Italian Pavilion (2021), co-curating the section Architecture as a Caregiver, acting as Creative Director for the Virtual Italian Pavilion, and curating the collateral event Students as Researchers (2023). She is a member of the NYC Architecture Biennial Advisory Board, the NYCxDesign Steering Committee, and served on the AIA NY Board of Directors as the 2024 Public Director for Educational Affairs and on the AIA NY Design Awards Committee.
A selection of scholarly work includes co-editing Peter Eisenman: Monograph for Korean Architects-KA (No.156, 1997) and Heliopolis 21 (Skira, 2021), as well as co-authoring Natural Born CaaDesigners (Birkhäuser, 2000), Cyberstone (Edilstampa, 2009), Digital Media for Design (Cognella, 2016), and Resilient Communities and the Peccioli Charter (Springer, 2021).
She holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia in Italy and a Master of Architecture from Pratt Institute in New York. She also completed the Harvard Management Development Program in Higher Education Leadership.
2025 Host Committee
Nicole and Andy Bernheimer
Katie Ford and Tom Bishop
Ellen and Fred Harris
Jonathan Kirschenfeld
Magnusson Architecture & Planning PC
Joseph Mizzi, Sciame Construction
Tiffany-Ann Taylor
Tom Wright
Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates PC
Regina Wickham and Grahame Shane
Katie Ford and Tom Bishop
Ellen and Fred Harris
Jonathan Kirschenfeld
Magnusson Architecture & Planning PC
Joseph Mizzi, Sciame Construction
Tiffany-Ann Taylor
Tom Wright
Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates PC
Regina Wickham and Grahame Shane
