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Four individuals are painting a mural on an asphalt street.

The Office for Socially Engaged Practice is a hub and a resource for collaborative, engaged practices in art, architecture, and design. We bring our faculty and students together to work with communities in St. Louis and around the world.

We are dedicated to building relationships with organizations and citizens to make the St. Louis region a more vibrant and equitable place.

From long-standing programs, like the University City Public Art Series and the Alberti Program, to newer initiatives like CityStudioSTL, the Office facilitates collaborative partnerships to support education, outreach, and innovation in community-based art and design.


CityStudioSTL

CityStudioSTL supports a series of community engagement and outreach projects that bring together students in architecture, art, and design with partners in the city of St. Louis. It is generously supported by Gina and Bill Wischmeyer, BA69/MArch71.

Minor in Creative Practice for Social Change

The minor in Creative Practice for Social Change provides students with a deeper understanding of how to use creative practices in art, design, and architecture to address systemic economic, environmental, and social challenges. Creativity is an essential component of social change, particularly in creating new systems and solutions, understanding the fundamental constraints of a challenge, and leading the process of change.

Youth Programs

Engaging youth in the St. Louis region in architecture, art, and design is an essential part of our mission. The Alberti Program and Design Connection build a pipeline of students interested in taking on the challenges of the world through creative practice.

University City Public Art

Each year, the parks, plazas, schools, shopping districts, galleries, libraries, and community centers of University City—Washington University’s neighbor to the north—fill with works by Sam Fox School art and design students as part of the University City Public Art Series.


Socially Engaged Courses and Academic Programs


Each semester, the Sam Fox School offers dozens of courses, workshops, and projects that meaningfully engage with communities. Students can also earn a minor in Creative Practice for Social Change.

Recent Socially Engaged Initiatives


Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Learn more about our commitments, efforts, and resources towards creating a more equitable and inclusive community.

Our Context in St. Louis

Through our work, we ask “how can art, architecture, and design confront the historic roots of St. Louis’ specific legacies of racism, sexism, displacement, exclusion, and political division, and imagine a different future?”

Community Request Form

Are you in the St. Louis region and interested in working with students or faculty from the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts? Get in touch with us through the form below.

Socially Engaged Resources and Opportunities


Mar 28, 11:30am – 12:30pm • Virtual

The Office for Socially Engaged Practice is a hub for collaborative, engaged practices in art, architecture, and design. Students and faculty work together with communities in St. Louis and around the world to create more vibrant and equitable places. Join us to learn more about courses, research and teaching opportunities, and fellowships that you can be a part of here at WashU.