Nicholas de Monchaux Appointed Dean of UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design

Nicholas de Monchaux has been named the William W. Wurster Dean of UC Berkeley's College of Environmental Design (CED), effective July 1, 2027. De Monchaux, an architect and urbanist, previously served as a professor at UC Berkeley from 2006 to 2019 and has been head of MIT's Department of Architecture since 2020. He succeeds Renee Y. Chow, who stepped down after five years as dean and will retire from the faculty after over 30 years. Chow's tenure ends June 30, 2026; professor Daniel G. Chatman will serve as interim dean from July 1, 2026, until de Monchaux starts. De Monchaux was educated at Yale and Princeton, directed the Berkeley Center for New Media, and held the Craigslist Distinguished Chair in New Media. His research includes the Apollo spacesuit and Star Wars special effects. He is a partner at modem and previously worked at Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Michael Hopkins & Partners.