Student Profiles

Meet Derec Custer! The Tucson local is working towards two exciting degrees: Bachelor of Landscape Architecture and Master of Real Estate Development. Hear about his transformative experience here at CAPLA! 

Yamilkal Hernandez Sanchez is a first-year MSUP student speaking on his Peace Corps experience.

For Hunter Bentley, M.Arch ‘28, a four-day field trip to Boston in February 2026 turned into the starting point for a summer internship that would reshape how he thinks about architecture.

Lyndsey Shafiei, a first-year Master of Architecture student, shares why she joined the Peace Corps and what she hopes to accomplish after earning her M.Arch degree from CAPLA.

Paul D. Coverdell Fellows are returned Peace Corps volunteers who receive financial assistance to pursue graduate degrees at universities across the country. In exchange, fellows complete internships in underserved American communities, applying the skills they learned abroad.

Paul D. Coverdell Fellows are returned Peace Corps volunteers who receive financial assistance to pursue graduate degrees at universities across the country. In exchange, fellows complete internships in underserved American communities, applying the skills they learned abroad.

Fifth-year B.Arch student Rachel Hink gained hands-on experience in architecture and community engagement through her summer internship with BWS Architects. From contributing to site plans and project meetings to participating in CanStruction, a community outreach event benefiting the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, the experience gave Hink valuable insight into how architecture can serve and strengthen communities.

Anselmo Vinhas, CAPLA’s Class of 2026, reflects on growth, favorite projects (3D-printed housing for Angola), cherished memories, and his next steps: U.S. experience and launching a business in Angola.

Dillon Tisdale’s externship with The M Group in D.C. immersed him in real-world architecture workflows, sustainability, and collaboration, shaping his career goals in net-zero design and project management.

CAPLA student Ella Parsons ('27 B.Arch) shares her ecological “cookbook,” blending art, architecture, and ecology to explore site, narrative, and design through experimental methods.

Linus Friedman ('26 SBE) is graduating with dual degrees in Sustainable Built Environments and German Studies and will join Kimley-Horn as a Transportation Planning Analyst.

Lesley Peréz (’27 MSUP, ’27 MS.Arch) is a dual-degree graduate student at CAPLA committed to advancing equity through design and policy. Inspired by her upbringing in East Los Ángeles, her work focuses on creating accessible, community-centered spaces where people can thrive. At CAPLA, she has served as a student ambassador, contributed to housing policy research with ARCHES, and engaged in community outreach through the Indigenous Society of Architecture, Planning and Design—shaping a future career in planning, transportation, and design at local and global scales.