In 2022, the Wyoming Board of Architects and Landscape Architects (WBALA) set the goal of amending the Practice Act. Sen. Stephan Pappas, AIA Wyoming, American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) WY/CO, National Council of Architectural Regulation Boards (NCARB) and Council of Landscape Architectural Regulation Boards (CLARB) were all valuable partners. Our collaborative efforts were successful in amending the Board’s Practice Act, which became effective on July 1, 2023. Amendments included: • Allow for alternative paths to licensure outside the accredited degree (in accordance with national standards). • Update administrative notice requirements (December certified mailings take an exorbitant amount of time and money to complete). • Provide grant funds from legislative authority (make it more official to support continuing education opportunities for our licensees and the general public). Before the board could begin licensing those with alternatives to the accredited degree, the board needed to amend the Rules to support the Practice Act changes. A Rules Committee was formed and has met fairly regularly with support by NCARB. Thank you to committee members Clint Taylor, Randy Byers, Dale Buckingham, Lewis Matthew Miller, Mitch Blake, Colleen Nelson, Emily Cronbaugh, Katie Wilson and NCARB Staff (especially Maurice Brown). Drafting updated rules for landscape architects was rather straightforward; CLARB already had language in place for national standards supporting alternative paths towards licensure outside of the accredited degree that was already voted upon by their membership. WBALA moved forward with updating the rules for landscape architects. These changes were made available for public comment, were approved by the governor’s office, and are currently in effect. Drafting updated rules for Architects has been a longer process. We received feedback from the Wyoming Attorney General’s (AG) office regarding the draft rule updates regarding Architectural Licensing. The Attorney’s comments ask us to be consistent with the requirements of W.S. 33-4-105(b)(iii): An applicant must either: 1) have a degree in architecture from an accredited school, practical experience, and pass an exam; OR 2) an educational alternative that is in accordance with NCARB standards. Generating national standards supporting alternative paths to licensure outside of the accredited degree is currently a priority of NCARB. However, NCARB is in the middle of a study for “Competency Standards for Architects” which is anticipated to last another 3-5 years. They wish to complete this study prior to formally addressing standards and model law for “Multiple Pathways to Licensure.” Nonetheless, staff members at NCARB were invaluable in working with Wyoming (WBALA) to explore multiple options and troubleshoot ideas. NCARB released “Interim Guidance on Multiple Paths.” NCARB Interim Guidance on Multiple Paths • Complete the NCARB Architectural Experience Program (AXP) twice if a candidate has a degree from a four-year bachelor’s degree program that includes at least 60 semester credit hours in architecture-related subjects. (Only courses NCARB considers “architecture-related” will be counted toward educational attainment for this path. The determination of whether post-secondary courses are considered “architecture-related subjects” follows the same process as “significant coursework in architecture, as determined by NCARB” as referenced in the NCARB Certification Guidelines in the Education Alternatives section.) • Complete the AXP three times if a candidate has a degree from a two-year associate degree program that includes at least 30 credit hours of coursework in architecture-related subjects. • Complete the AXP four times if a candidate has a high school degree or an established equivalent but does not have a relevant post-secondary academic education. On July 22, 2024, the Wyoming Board of Architects and Landscape Architects unanimously voted in approval to adopt the “NCARB Interim Guidelines for Multiple Pathways.” This was a significant milestone! Our next step will be to review/approve the actual amended language of the rules. This vote will take place at the next WBALA Meeting on Oct. 25. The draft rules will then be posted for public comment (45 days). WBALA will respond to any public comment received in early 2025. If there are no changes, the amended rules go to the Wyoming governor’s office (75 days). Personally, we do not feel like the interim guidance is perfect, but it is a start. We have already expressed to NCARB that Wyoming would be interested in helping on a committee and/or being involved as development continues. Providing alternative/non-traditional pathways towards earning an initial architectural license in Wyoming will be a great benefit. I strongly believe that it will help make our profession more attractive and accessible to the next generation of professionals. I look forward to keeping more Wyoming students in our state and building their architectural careers at Wyoming firms. In October, all Wyoming Licensed Architects & Landscape Architects will receive a reminder to renew if their licenses are up for renewal. Costly and time-consuming “certified letters” will no longer be sent as a final reminder at the end of December. Please renew early! WBALA is thankful to AIA Wyoming for bringing high-quality continuing education opportunities to our State. We are proud to support these efforts through grant funding — please continue to apply! Wyoming Architects Practice Act Update BY EMILY CRONBAUGH AND KATIE WILSON, AIA 18 WYOMING ARCHITECTURE .24 | www.aia-wyoming.org
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODQxMjUw