2025 Boudreaux Scholars

2025 Boudreaux Scholars are working to reimagine history, design, and cultural memory

JULY 15, 2025

By SHYLA KRISHNAPPA

Incoming graduate students Isabelle Reimer, Patrick Dimond, and Erika Dickerson-Despenza have been selected as the 2025 Boudreaux Scholars. At the intersection of storytelling, design, and public engagement, they are transforming the way we see and interact with the world around us. Each brings a unique lens to the study and practice of history and design, united by a shared dedication to amplifying underrepresented voices and making the built environment more inclusive, equitable, and meaningful.

Through the generosity of the Boudreaux Family, the Tulane School of Architecture and Built Environment launched the Boudreaux Scholars program in 2021, an initiative designed to create pathways for students from historically underrepresented groups to enter professions within the built environment. Now in its fifth year, the program continues to advance TuSABE’s commitment to fostering equitable, diverse, and inclusive practices, both in and beyond the classroom.

All TuSABE applicants are automatically considered for this award, regardless of of race, national origin, sex or any other demographically protected criteria. Tulane University is an equal opportunity educator and employer.

Each year, the scholarship is awarded to one incoming student from each graduate program at the school: Architecture, Historic Preservation, and Sustainable Real Estate Development.

A graduate of Valdosta State University with a BA in History and a concentration in Public History, Isabelle Reimer has devoted her work to telling the often-overlooked stories of minority communities in Valdosta, Georgia. While still a student, she curated two exhibits, including Persistence through Resistance, which explored the city’s Equalization schools—Dasher High School (1929–1956) and Pinevale High School (1956–1972).

“My inspiration to continue history in the public sphere is based on the personal connections I have already created,” Isabelle says. Growing up in Mobile, Alabama, surrounded by historic architecture, she developed a lifelong interest in how buildings and stories shape communities. Looking forward, she hopes to keep working in museums, archives, or classrooms—spaces where she can help other young historians discover the same sense of connection that shaped her own journey.

With a master’s degree in architecture from Indiana University, Patrick Dimond combines design expertise with communications strategy to tell powerful stories about the built environment. As the Director of Communications for Multistudio—a national design practice with offices across the country—Patrick refines and promotes the firm's visual identity, ensuring its design values resonate within and beyond the profession.

Patrick’s career centers on translating complex design ideas into accessible, compelling narratives. His editorial work with Madame Architect highlighted women who challenge the status quo and broaden the conversation about who shapes our built world. “I am pursuing a part-time degree in Sustainable Real Estate Development to deepen my understanding of how design, policy, and economics intersect to shape the built environment,” Patrick shares.

Playwright, cultural memory worker, and ecowomanist Erika Dickerson-Despenza brings a multidisciplinary approach to storytelling and preservation. The creator and inaugural resident of The Ntozake Shange Social Justice Playwriting Residency at The Public Theater, Erika uses theater to honor the lived experiences of Black women and communities historically erased or overlooked.

“As a result of my time in Tulane's Master of Science in Historic Preservation program, I see myself serving as an Artist Estate (Archive) Planning consultant for Black women and femme literary artists and an independent Visual & Material Culture Historian specializing in 18th and 19th century Black built environments of the American South,” Erika says. Her vision is rooted in Louisiana, where her family has lived for eight generations, and reflects her belief that preservation is inseparable from cultural memory and justice.

The Tulane School of Architecture and Built Environment is now accepting applications for all graduate programs for Summer and Fall 2026. If you are interested in applying, please visit the school’s website at https://architecture.tulane.edu/admissions/graduate or contact Michael J. Cusanza, Associate Director of Admissions, at mcusanza@tulane.edu.

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