KATHRYN H. ANTHONY is ACSA Distinguished Professor and the longest serving female faculty member at the School of Architecture, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA.  She holds a Ph.D. in architecture and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of California at Berkeley. She received national awards from the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA), and the American Institute of Architects (AIA), including the 2021 AIA/ACSA Topaz Medallion for Excellence in Architectural Education, and the 2020 Chicago Women in Architecture Lifetime Achievement Award.

One of her latest books is Defined by Design: The Surprising Power of Hidden Gender, Age and Body Bias in Everyday Products and Places (Prometheus Books, 2017, distributed by Rowman & Littlefield).  It is now available in Chinese and Korean translations.

She is the co-author of Shedding New Light on Art Museum Additions: Front Stage and Back Stage Experiences, with Altaf Engineer (Routledge, 2017).

She is also the author of two award-winning books, Designing for Diversity:  Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in the Architectural Profession (University of Illinois Press, 2001, 2008), Design Juries on Trial:  The Renaissance of the Design Studio (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1991; 20^thAnniversary Edition, 2012 available on Amazon.com) and over 100 publications.

Dr. Anthony has served as a national spokesperson about gender issues in design on ABC World News with Diane Sawyer, CBS Sunday Morning, CNN, National Public Radio (NPR), KCBS News Radio San Francisco, Ottawa Today 1310 News Radio, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The Economist, The Guardian, The Los Angeles Times, Time.com, The San Diego Union-Tribune, Toronto Star, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and elsewhere.  The New York Times (April 13, 2009) featured her words as the Quotation of the Day.

She has testified before Congress regarding gender equity in public restrooms.

Watch the Congressional Testimony on Youtube

Professor Anthony teaches, conducts research, and writes about how spaces and places affect people. Her expertise includes social and behavioral factors in design, gender and race in contemporary architecture, and entrepreneurship in design.

Throughout her academic career, Dr. Anthony has served as a catalyst to challenge and change architectural education and practice, inspiring faculty to create more humane learning environments, architects to create more humane working environments, and students to empower themselves. Her teaching, research, writing, and service have educated hundreds of architecture students, faculty, and practitioners—and the public–about the critical importance of designing for diversity and designing spaces for people.